Blue Eyes
by WallofIllusion
Summary: When Seto has recurring visions of a blueeyed girl from his past, he turns to the Ishtars for their help. While he stays at their home to research, something starts to develop between him and Isis...
1. Default Chapter

Chapter One

Isis sat at the Cairo airport, hands folded and legs crossed. She was incredibly tense. For what seemed like the thousandth time, she looked at her watch. Once again, she found that what had felt like another half-hour had been no more than five minutes.

She had many reasons to worry. One, she was at the airport waiting for someone whom the Ishtars were going to allow into their home simply because he wanted to research—which was severely stretching the family laws, if not breaking them. Two, the plane was an hour late, and she'd told Malik she'd be back by now.

But she suspected the most prevalent reason she was nervous was whom she was waiting for: Seto Kaiba, possibly the strongest agnostic she had spoken to during Battle City, wanted to research his ancient past.

To say she'd been surprised when Seto Kaiba had called her would be an enormous understatement. Her shock had only grown as he explained that he wanted to find out about a girl he'd seen in a vision… the vision that had changed the future during their duel. The vision that had stopped him from attacking with the God of Obelisk and convinced him to attack with his Blue-Eyes White Dragon instead.

Seto had asked if her family had any texts he could look through for mention of the girl he'd seen. Isis's first instinct had been to refuse politely, but… something had been distressingly different about Seto's attitude over the phone. Instead of the detached, cold tone in Seto's voice that she had become familiar with during Battle City, his speech was halting and uncertain. He frequently corrected himself or trailed off in the middle of a sentence. Whatever it was he wanted to learn about, it was very important to him. So, unwilling to let him down, Isis had promised to ask Malik and Rishid when she got home from her daily job with the Egyptian government.

And she had. They had had a long discussion about it, too, before Malik had reluctantly decided that Seto could stay at their home for a month, at most. To research. Because after all, he was as much a part of the Pharaoh's destiny as anything else…

"Flight 610, arriving from New York, USA," said a mechanical-sounding voice. Isis didn't know whether to sigh in relief or grow more nervous. In any case, she stood and walked towards the window, watching the silver plane roll in. She waited with impatience and worry melding in her mind as the gate extended from the airport to the plane and people began to enter.

Seto was one of the first people to leave the plane. Isis almost didn't recognize him without his characteristic flashy coat. Instead, he wore a black sleeveless top with black pants. Around his neck was a cord with what appeared to be a small, plated Magic & Wizards card. He carried his traditional briefcase. As she watched him scan the room, Isis wondered if he was as nervous as she was.

Forcing down her worries, though, she walked up to him after he'd separated from the crowd. "Welcome to Egypt," she said, giving him her usual mysterious half-smile.

"Thank you," he muttered awkwardly. Then, "I have more things at the baggage claim."

"It's this way." Isis led him down the crowded hall of the airport, trying to think of something to say. But her mind remained blank until Seto had taken his suitcase from the baggage claim, and then all she could manage was, "Would you like help carrying that?"

"No, I've got it," he answered.

"We'll be walking."

"I need some exercise after that ride."

"Oh, how was it?" Isis wondered why she hadn't thought to ask before.

Seto shrugged. "It was no different from any other plane I've been on," he replied nonchalantly. Then he continued, "I'm sorry it was late."

"It's not your fault," she answered, "but I hope you aren't that hungry, because we can't stop to eat."

"That's fine."

So they left the airport and Isis began to lead Seto out of the city and towards the stretch of desert that separated her home from the rest of civilization. As the buildings became scarcer and the paved roads faded into dirt ones, Seto said, "I don't think I've adequately thanked you for allowing me to come and research. If there's anything you'd like in return…?"

"No, we need no thanks," Isis replied with some embarrassment. "But I do have a question for you." When Seto didn't protest, she asked, "Why are you so concerned about a girl you saw in a vision? Just one girl, in one vision. Nothing _I _showed you seemed to have such an effect…"

"Possibly because it didn't," Seto said shortly. Then he shrugged. "And at first that girl didn't either. I couldn't have cared less about her. But I've seen her since then. I keep dreaming about her, and I'm not sure if they're really dreams or more visions. In all of the dreams, though…" He trailed off.

"Yes?" Isis pressed.

"In all of the dreams, there's a sense of longing coming from her. Something about her… I feel like she wants me to learn about her. And sometimes, I feel the longing too, in my dream. I think she…" Seto looked off into the distance. Isis was pretty sure he was avoiding her eyes on purpose. "I think she meant something to my past self."

"Do you mean that he loved her?" Isis asked, masking her surprise.

"I'm not sure. It may have been something like that, but… in the first vision I saw, during our duel, my past self looked like he had sacrificed her to the Blue-Eyes White Dragon. It may be that he was only interested in that."

"I disagree," Isis replied thoughtfully. "You were… your past self was a very powerful person. For one sacrifice to be so important, when y… he could have made thousands were that his temperament, there would have to be something special about her."

Seto didn't reply to this, so they relapsed into silence. In a few more minutes of walking, the trap door that separated the Ishtars' home from the rest of the world appeared. "Here we are," Isis said, walking up to it and holding it open for Seto. When he didn't enter, Isis looked at him questioningly. "Is something wrong?"

"You… you live underground?" Seto asked uncertainly, his face disbelieving.

Isis paused uneasily, her mouth slightly open as she tried to think of a response. Having lived in the tomb for most of her life, it had never seemed unusual to her, but she hadn't realized that Seto might find it odd. "Is that a problem?" she said apprehensively.

"N-no," Seto replied quickly, shaking his head. "I'm sorry, I didn't… never mind." He hurried through the door, and as he passed, Isis was surprised to see a bit of a blush on his face.

"We're here, Malik!" Isis called down the stone hall, entering and shutting the trapdoor.

"It's about time," Malik's voice answered, sounding distinctly nettled. "What did you do, stop to eat on the way or something? I hope not, because Rishid's making dinner…" He entered the hallway, looking at Isis and Seto with an annoyed expression.

"My airplane was late. I apologize," Seto told Malik.

Malik paused for the barest fraction of a second, no doubt deciding what attitude to take with their guest, and then observed lightly, "Lateness seems to be a general trend with planes." He smirked at Isis—the plane they had taken back to Egypt had been _three_ hours late—then continued in a more serious tone, "Welcome to the home of the Gravekeeper Tribe."

Seto bowed formally. "Thank you very much for allowing me to come to research."

Malik shrugged. "Don't mention it," he said, clearly awkward. "D'you want some dinner?"

"Yes, please."

Isis and Seto followed Malik into the dining room, where Rishid was setting the table. "Welcome, Seto Kaiba," Rishid greeted their guest as the three entered.

"Thank you," Seto said for the third time that day. The four sat down at the table and began to eat. As they ate, Malik spoke with Seto, giving recommendations for which specific texts he might want to use—Malik knew the Ishtar library better than Rishid and Isis combined.

Isis, however, remained silent and contemplated their guest. He was so unlike the Seto she had known during Battle City that it was like he was a different person. Gone was the proud young man who pushed away any helping hand and scorned showing weakness. In his place was a boy who asked near-strangers for assistance and, in the short time he had been in Egypt, had demonstrated both humility and embarrassment.

Isis felt sorry for him, realizing how unusual his situation was. He was used to trusting no one and relying only on himself, but now he was in a position where he had no choice but to depend on her family.

As strange as it was, Isis almost missed the other Seto, the one who had sneered at her advice and refused to believe what he called her "Egyptian fairy tales," no matter how much proof he received in their favor. The one who was sometimes rude, but always confident and self-reliant. The one who had earned her respect during Battle City. She was almost sad for the unnatural change that had come over him.

Almost. But only almost, because somewhere in her heart, a voice whispered, _If he hadn't changed, he wouldn't be here. You would have never seen him again._ For some reason, she couldn't ignore the whisper. It refused to go away, no matter how much she tried to forget about it.

She didn't know why it would matter to her to never see Seto again… but it did.


	2. Chapter two

Chapter Two

The next night

It was seven o'clock at night, and Seto Kaiba was extremely frustrated.

He had come to the Ishtars' home planning to use a software program to analyze their texts. But Malik had disagreed with that plan—strongly disagreed. They had argued for almost a half an hour before Seto reluctantly acquiesced and handed Malik his laptop, planning to use it as soon as he was allowed to.

So he had done as Malik commanded: instead of scanning the original texts into his computer to translate them, he had laboriously copied the hieroglyphs by hand and scanned that in when he was in his room. But when he hit "translate" on the software he was using, all his diligence had meant nothing. The "translation" that had emerged was unintelligible and unhelpful.

Hoping he would have better luck, he tried the next page. It didn't work. He muttered a curse as he read some of it: "Final play game judge gods object 1000 year." Yeah, that was real helpful.

"Are you having any luck, Seto?" Isis's voice asked quietly from behind him. Seto turned around to see that the Egyptian woman was standing in his room, holding a tray with what appeared to be soup and bread. Seeing his eyes settle on the tray, Isis said, "I brought you some dinner."

"Thank you," Seto replied. He took the tray and then turned back to his computer. It was an indication that he wanted Isis to leave. Not at all to Seto's surprise, she didn't.

"Hmm…" she murmured, walking up to take a look at the computer screen. "It doesn't make much sense, does it?"

"No," Seto said irritably.

"Let's see…" Isis closed the translation window.

"I was going to try to interpret some of that!" Seto exclaimed.

Quite ignoring Seto's indignation, Isis asked, "May I see the papers you're using?"

Seto reluctantly handed over a piece of paper from the large stack he had copied. He watched as Isis pursed her lips, obviously holding back a comment on the clumsiness of his imitative hieroglyphs. Then she muttered to herself, "This is probably supposed to be…" She asked Seto if he had a pen; when he lent one to her, she began making what Seto considered to be an inordinate amount of corrections.

After a minute of this, Seto said coldly, "This wouldn't be so difficult if your brother had allowed me to scan in the originals."

Isis didn't even blink before replying, "Nor would it be this hard if you had asked him to help you translate."

Lacking an answer to Isis's statement, Seto returned to his own. "Malik is being unreasonable," he insisted angrily. "Can't you say something to him?"

"No," Isis said serenely, not looking up from the paper. "First of all, I agree with him. Our family has protected these texts for three thousand years—and kept them secret. We don't want them to spread, and computer networks are easy to access and easy to manipulate. Second of all, he is the head of the family, and not I. It is not my place to disagree with his decision, especially one that has to do with the protection of our duty." She finished editing the paper and said, "This should work better. Would you like to scan it in?"

Once again, Seto held the paper up to the scanning sensor on his laptop. As the hieroglyphs appeared on the screen, he found a part himself hoping that Isis's corrections _didn't_ work. Just to spite her.

He was about to hit "Translate" when Isis breathed, "Wait…" Her left hand on the back of the chair for balance, she leaned over Seto's shoulder to reach his computer. She quickly adjusted some of the settings: Dynasty—18th, Direction—Left to Right; then she pressed the enter key.

Seto expected her to straighten as the translation appeared on the screen. But she didn't. Her hand curled above the mousepad hesitantly, she remained in the position she was in, almost curled around Seto in a way. Uncomfortably, Seto coughed. When that didn't get a response, he pushed his chair out.

Isis pulled up immediately, whisking her right hand away from the laptop and removing her left from the back of Seto's chair. "Sorry," she murmured.

Seto didn't reply, because his teeth were gritted in frustration. The program's translation was, of course, perfectly understandable. Obviously, Isis's corrections had improved the text.

Not noticing Seto's irritation, Isis said lightly, "There, that's better, isn't it?" She scanned the screen. "Hmm… See where it says 'chaos' here? That's actually 'Set,' your n… your past self's name."

"Chaos?" Seto questioned. "That's flattering."

"He was named for the god of chaos," Isis explained, "who is also called Seth and a host of other names. He—"

"I don't care," Seto interrupted. "I'm only here to find that girl."

Isis paused, then sighed. "There's nothing about her on this page. We could save time if you'd like me to scan the rest and see if—"

"No," Seto said firmly. "I don't need your help. Shouldn't you go eat dinner?"

Isis seemed confused by his blunt refusal. "What about the other pages? Would you like me to correct them?"

"No."

"But…"

Was there something about this woman that blinded her from seeing when she wasn't wanted? "I don't want your help, Isis!" Seto half-shouted.

"I can't say I find that surprising," said Malik's voice. Seto and Isis both turned towards the door. Malik was leaning on the doorframe. "Does it always take you so long to deliver someone's dinner, Isis?" he asked. "Or is it because you were having such a nice chat with Kaiba that you let your dinner get cold?"

"I was helping to correct some of the hieroglyphs he copied," Isis protested.

"Why?" Malik asked, glaring at Seto. "He doesn't want anyone's help."

Seto scowled back at him. "I don't _need_ anyone's help."

Instead of replying, Malik went to Seto's stack of papers and picked up a sheet. He scanned it, amusement creeping into his annoyed face. "Yes you do."

"Malik! Don't be so rude!" Isis said quietly in Arabic. Seto wondered if she were under the impression he couldn't understand her.

Malik turned towards her, but looked at Seto out of the corner of his eye. Speaking in Arabic as well, he replied factually, "_He's_ certainly being rude. In fact, he's being an idiot." Seto frowned. "He won't listen to our suggestions or let us help. There's no way he'll find this girl he's looking for in a month." He paused. "Got that, Kaiba?" He asked that in Japanese.

Seto smiled coldly and nodded. Looking embarrassed, Isis asked, "You speak Arabic?"

"I speak quite a few languages," Seto replied.

"Oh."

Still looking at Seto, Malik said, "Why don't you go eat your dinner, Isis."

Isis began to leave, but stopped when she noticed Malik wasn't following. "Aren't you…?"

"I'm going to speak with Kaiba for a little longer."

Seto and Malik watched as Isis left, then turned to each other. "What do you want?" Seto challenged.

Malik leaned on a wall. "I meant what I said, you realize that," he replied casually. "You are acting quite… unwisely by forcing away anyone who wants to help you. If you continue doing that, there really is no chance of you finding this girl within the month you are allowed here."

Frustrated and angry, Seto stood up from his chair. "I can do this on my own. It's not as though I ever asked you for help."

"Yes, you did. When you asked if you could use our library."

Seto hadn't thought of it that way, but he didn't let it show. "That was when I was under the impression I could use my computer." Then he realized something. "You knew my copies were going to be horrible, didn't you?"

Malik looked surprised. "Why would you think that?" he asked, no hint of sarcasm in his voice.

"Why else wouldn't you worry about scanning in my copies, as opposed to the originals? If they're good, it doesn't make a difference, because the information is still out there."

Malik shrugged, looking away slightly. "Honestly, that never occurred to me," he admitted. "I just didn't… want the texts to reach the internet, or anything like that. These books are kind of my treasure." He paused for a moment, seeming thoughtful. "Imagine if someone wanted to scan… say, your Blue-Eyes White Dragon card into the internet, but you knew that if they did, there was a possibility that someone could make illegal copies, really good counterfeits from it. Would you still allow that?"

"Of course not." Seto crossed his arms and waited for Malik to make his point.

"Because it's your treasure, your most precious card, maybe even your most precious possession, right?" Malik asked. When Seto nodded, he continued, "You want to protect it. You don't want anyone else to have it, especially people who shouldn't. It's something like that with my books."

"Whatever," Seto replied, purposefully distant; in fact, he understood what Malik was saying. "That doesn't mean I can't do this on my own."

Malik sighed. "You're beginning to frustrate me. You didn't come here expecting to do this on your own—you expected to have the help of the computer—and no one says you have to work alone now. Rishid and Isis and I know far more about these texts than any computer does. So why won't you accept our help?"

"I'm getting tired of repeating myself. I don't _need_ your help."

Picking up the paper he had looked at before, Malik scanned it, counting. "I see ten mistakes in the first two lines alone," he said. "It took me eight years to learn to write fluently in hieroglyphs and five just to learn to read them. And here you are, expecting to learn in less than a month. You need to accept our help, or you need to get out of here and stop wasting our time and yours."

Seto's fists curled at the threat, but he replied coolly, "I'll think about it."

"You do that," Malik said, beginning to leave. Then he stopped and turned back to Seto. "And one more thing: be more polite to my sister. She wants to help you. She wants you to succeed. She was the one who argued so strongly in your favor when we discussed whether you should be allowed to research here."

"Probably because she wanted me to learn about my past, right?" Seto asked, remembering her insistent campaign during Battle City.

Malik shook his head. "That was a while ago, Kaiba," he said. "She really wants to help you, that's all."

Seto shrugged. There was just something about the Egyptian woman that irritated him. But he conceded, "Fine. I'll be nicer. Happy?"

"Thanks," Malik replied. He left.

Seto sat back down at his computer, sighed, and scanned in another page of hieroglyphs. He would think about accepting help—later.


	3. Chapter three

Chapter Three

Isis bit her lip as she reached the end of Seto's carefully copied hieroglyphs and looked up. "Well?" Seto asked her. Isis could hear the eagerness in his voice. Meeting his eyes apologetically, she shook her head.

But Seto had already been able to tell by her expression that his day's work had once again been a failure. He felt his face grow taut, and he clenched his fist in frustration. Not bothering to take the papers Isis was holding out to him—they were useless, after all—he turned away and stalked off. Once again, the text that he had spent an entire day working on didn't mention the blue-eyed girl he was trying to find. Even the Ishtars' help in "editing" his poorly-copied hieroglyphs was worthless.

Passing the library, Seto paused for a moment in contemplation, then continued to his room. Sometimes he wanted to copy another text after the failure of one, but not today. Today he just wanted to brood. He sat down at his table and booted up his laptop, deciding he would write an email to Mokuba.

In her own room, Isis was changing into one of her more comfortable dresses. As she did, she worried about Seto. Today was the first time she had edited one of his papers—well, edited it with his permission anyway, since the first time had been before he had officially allowed the Ishtars to look over his papers after finishing them. That was a few days ago, but usually by the time she returned home from work, Rishid or Malik had already edited the copies and announced that they didn't mention the girl. At that news, Isis's brothers told her, Seto would either go to the library to copy more hieroglyphs or to his room to brood.

But this was the first time she'd seen for herself how frustrated Seto could become.

As she pulled her hair out of its braid, she wondered if Seto would accept more help. Probably not, because Malik had already offered to search through the texts on his own for the girl, and Seto had refused.

But it was worth a try, wasn't it?

Seto had almost finished his email to Mokuba when he heard Isis come in. Quickly, he pressed a series of keyboard commands that closed the email, saved it to his computer, and minimized the internet. Then, without turning around to face Isis, he asked, "What do you want?"

Isis, who hadn't been able to follow the rapid movement of Seto's hands or the computer screen, answered with a question of her own. "What were you doing?"

Seto shrugged. "None of your business," he said guardedly.

He turned around to see Isis looking slightly suspicious.

"What was it?" she asked.

"Nothing," Seto repeated, glaring at her.

Isis met his eyes seriously. "It wasn't anything to do with our texts, was it?"

Seto frowned at her, but then he realized that her suspicion was, if not valid, reasonable. "I was writing to Mokuba."

"Oh." Isis relaxed. "I can come back later, then," she said.

But before she could leave, Seto said, "Wait. What do you want?"

"It isn't important," Isis replied. "I don't want to bother you."

"You've already bothered me. Now make your interruption worth my time."

Isis cast a bemused look at Seto, puzzled by his strange logic. His eyes were expressionless, giving no hint of whether or not he was serious.

"Well, it's nothing really…" she said hesitantly.

"You interrupted my letter to Mokuba for nothing?" Seto scoffed, giving her a scowl. In truth, he wasn't really bothered by her interruption. He just wanted to make sure she thought he was, so it wouldn't happen again.

"That's not what I meant."

"Then what is it?" Seto asked, putting his fingertips together and fixing Isis with a stare that often caused KaibaCorp employees mild panic attacks.

However, Isis wasn't affected because she wasn't looking at him anymore; she suddenly found the texture of the stone ceiling quite fascinating. "I… I know you're not doing very well with your research," she said quietly. "It must be very frustrating for you."

Seto shrugged and hmph-ed. "Your point is?"

"Well… it might make things easier for you if I were to help look—"

"_I don't want your help_."

Once again, Seto's abrupt refusal puzzled Isis. She bit her lip for a moment, and then said, "But don't you want to find that girl? If you would let me help, you wouldn't have to waste your time looking through useless books!"

"I don't care," Seto said. "I don't want anyone's help." Turning his back on her, he opened up his email to Mokuba and began typing. Isis knew Seto wanted to end the conversation, but something told her to keep talking.

"I want you to find what you're looking for, Seto," she said quietly. Seto cast an irked look over his shoulder at her, only to find that she wasn't looking at him. Her eyes were on the ground as she continued, "I want you to be happy. I… I care about y… how you feel. That's why I encouraged Malik to allow you to come here. It's why I'm offering my help now."

Seto scowled, beginning to think that he should have told her to leave right away. "I don't care why you're offering your help. I told you, I don't want it. The fact that I have to keep repeating myself makes me wonder whether or not you're listening to me."

"I am," she replied softly. Why did she suddenly feel so small?

"Well, then why don't you pay attention to what I'm saying?"

Isis shrugged and lifted her eyes from the ground. For a moment, Seto thought she looked a little sad. But then her face was impassive, respectful. "I understand," she said quietly. "I won't bother you about it anymore." She bowed and left the room.

Seto resisted the urge to say "Good!" to her back. By himself once again, he finished his email and then shut down his computer. His stomach gave a small growl, and he realized that one of the Ishtars would be bringing him his dinner soon. He hoped it wouldn't be Isis, as it usually was. He'd had about enough of her for a while.

He didn't know where her talent of grating on his nerves came from, but he certainly knew she had it. What's more, she probably knew it too.

But strangely, he didn't mind her persistence as much lately, even though she was acting exactly as she had during Battle City. Seto wondered whether this was because he was growing immune to her, or maybe even—

No, it had to be because he was becoming immune. Seto tried to dismiss the other option, which had voiced itself in his mind before he could stop it. _Starting to like her, indeed!_ Seto forced a laugh. That was ridiculous.

…Wasn't it?

Lying on her bed, Isis was thinking similar things. _Why does it matter so much?_ she asked herself. _Why do I care what he does? It's his choice how he goes about looking for that girl, and nothing I do will change his mind about it._

But it hurt her when she saw him so upset. His frustration was like a stab to her own heart.

Why did it hurt her, though? It wasn't because he was learning nothing about his past, although until now Isis had told herself that that was the case.

Was it because she was… fond of him? By the end of their duel at Battle City, Isis had known that she liked Seto—she respected him and enjoyed speaking with him, even if all they did was debate (some would say argue). But now it went beyond that. Now it was more important to her that he found what he the blue-eyed girl he was looking for than whether or not he learned about his past. She wanted him to succeed. She wanted him to be happy, as she'd told him.

But why?

_It's just for one month_, Seto was thinking. _In less than a month, I can leave._

But suddenly, he felt a pang of sadness. _After that, I'll never see Isis again._ The thought unfolded in his mind, entirely without his permission. _So?_ he thought back quickly. _Why should I care? I don't! I don't care if I never see her again! I can't wait!_

Except that, for whatever reason, he did care. And he knew it. And it made him angry.

Isis shifted position on her bed. She was so confused. Her heart was confused, and so her normally logical mind was also confused. She didn't like it.

_One month only_, she told herself. _After that, Seto's gone, and I don't have to—_

_Seto's gone._ Why did her heart clench at that thought?

_I don't want him to be gone. I don't want to never see him again._

Seto pounded his fist into the table, trying to make his heart agree with his head. _I don't care! I don't care about her!_ But the same thought kept answering back: _Yes, I do._

Isis covered her face with her hand and rubbed her forehead. _So it's true, I care about him. But why?_


	4. Chapter four

Chapter Four

Isis awoke and stretched. Yawning, she looked at her watch. 7:04; she had to leave for work in an hour.

She got up from bed and lit the torch in her room, then changed into one of her "work" dresses. Deciding to leave her hair down, at least for the moment, she left her room to see if anyone was awake.

Seto probably was. It had been a week, and he had yet to find mention of the blue-eyed girl in the scrolls he chose. Each time he failed to find her, he became more determined. So he was in the library every morning, copying hieroglyphs obsessively.

Isis wondered who the girl was, that she could upset Seto so. Because it was quite clear that he was upset. He was adamantly determined to find the girl, and his inability to do so was frustrating him. Yet he refused any help other than proofreading. Isis had had to resist the desire to offer again and again to search through some of the texts and see if she could find the girl. He turned her down the first time, and he'd been quite annoyed. And she'd said she'd stop. But she was having difficulty keeping that promise.

_Why won't he let me help?_ Isis wondered. Although, truthfully, she probably knew why he refused her help: he preferred to work alone, and of all people, Isis was probably one of the ones whose assistance he'd like least. But she still wanted to help him. It was a reason to be near him, after all.

Because despite all logic, she found that she had indeed grown very fond of him. She wanted to be near him, to speak with him and learn about his feelings.

But he rejected her presence. And though she tried not to let it bother her, it was painful to see how little interest he paid her.

As she passed the library, Isis looked in and paused. Seto was sitting at the library table, which had at least three scrolls spread out on it. But he was not writing, which was strange. Usually he copied non-stop. Now he was just staring at a scroll. She watched him for a moment, and in some corner of her mind she thought, _he's beautiful when he's concentrating_. But then she noticed that he looked troubled.

"Seto…?" Isis asked hesitantly. He didn't respond. Isis walked up to him and touched him on the shoulder. "Seto? Is everything alright?"

She felt him give a slight jump under her hand. He looked at her out of the corner of his eye, seeming contemplative. "Is something wrong…?" Isis said, worried.

Seto shrugged. The movement brought Isis's attention to the fact that her hand was still on his shoulder, so she quickly pulled it away.

Then, appearing to make a decision, Seto gestured towards the top of the scroll and asked in a business-like tone, "What does this say?"

Blinking at the unexpected question, Isis glanced at the top of the scroll, taking in its meaning and translating it to its rough Japanese equivalent: "Today I found a strange girl while hunting. I saved her life. She—"

"That's enough." Seto's face was taut, and his voice was flat and irritated. "The next part is 'She has unusually light skin and hair, and blue eyes. The villagers were stoning her for their bad luck, thinking her a witch.' "

_He can read it!!_ Isis gasped. "Y-yes!" she exclaimed in wonder. "That's exactly right! How… how did you know!?"

Seto was scowling. He pushed back his chair and gathered the scrolls. "I don't know and I don't care," he snapped. To Isis's surprise, he began to put the scrolls back on the bookshelf.

"Wait!" she cried, grasping his arm. He glared at her, but she continued, "Seto, doesn't it sound like that's the girl?" He didn't answer. "And the fact that you can read it, it's a sign! This is what you're looking for!"

Seto scowled more deeply and pulled his arm out of her grip. "A sign?" he asked sarcastically. "A freak event hardly seems to me like a sign. I doubt this has occurred to you, but I'm not supposed to be able to read this."

"But…" Isis watched helplessly as Seto reshelved the scroll and looked for another. "But that one specifically mentions a strange girl! You should be glad you can read it! She's probably the one you're looking for!"

For a second, Seto met her eyes, then looked away. Isis caught her breath at the emotions contained in that short glance: annoyance, frustration… fear? No, that was impossible, certainly, Isis thought; but she knew it wasn't. Seto was afraid of his strange ability, his supernatural ability, to read the hieroglyphs. Suddenly, Isis pitied him. She'd known before that he had a low tolerance for things out-of-the-ordinary, for the unexplainable. But it seemed uncharacteristic for him to allow that fear to interfere with what he wanted… normally he let nothing stand in his way. Was it really so disturbing to him, this piece of his past?

Quietly, Isis said, "Do what you like, Seto."

He gave her a look that said _like I need your permission to do that._ Hand hesitating by the shelf, he gave a low growl of frustration, then yanked out the scroll he had just replaced.

The one he could read.

He gave Isis another look, this one daring her to say anything. She didn't, instead bowing to him and turning away. Only then did she allow herself a small, pleased smile.

Isis couldn't concentrate at work. She was too worried about Seto, wondering whether or not he was learning anything from the scroll he could suddenly read. She hurried through everything she could, barely taking a lunch break, cursing the day she'd decided to keep her job with the Egyptian government. She turned down three new assignments and yelled at the person who brought one she couldn't ignore. She wanted to go home already!

Finally, she could. Eager and impatient, she rode the bus to the edge of the city and walked from there, instead of going on foot the whole way as usual. As she walked across the desert, an idea occurred to her. Could Seto read the scroll because it was written by Priest Set—his past self—and he unconsciously remembered writing it?

Come to think of it, the text had seemed like a journal from what Isis had seen. Was it possible that it was Set's?

Isis paused for a moment as she realized the implications of this discovery, then sped up with excitement. If it was true, Seto would discover things far more important than the identity of a mysterious girl. He would learn of his role in the Pharaoh's court, and understand the reason behind his rivalry with Yuugi, and…

And he wouldn't care a bit. Isis sighed as she realized that no matter how important Seto's past was, it meant nothing to him. He barely agreed to refer to Set as his past self and refused to acknowledge any other connection.

And he had even been disinclined to research this girl originally, Isis remembered. It was only after persistent dreams of the strange girl that he reluctantly asked the Ishtars for help.

But despite that, Isis doubted that he would stop now until he knew everything possible about this girl, especially after finding the journal that seemed to speak of her. His fervor for finding the mysterious girl grew with every day that passed. It had almost become an obsession.

"Hey, Isis!" Malik's voice called, breaking Isis's train of thought as the tomb came into sight. Malik was standing near the tomb, waving. He must have just returned from the market—Isis and Rishid had decided that it was unreasonable to ask Malik to stay inside now.

"Hi, Malik," Isis replied. "How was your day?"

"Too short, as usual," he sighed, referring to the time he'd spent outside. "Made even shorter by the fact that I stayed in to check out the miracle text of Kaiba's."

The two went inside. "Oh? Did you discover anything interesting?" Isis questioned her younger brother.

"It's one of the journals that Father didn't want us to read, because he felt them biased and unimportant." Isis could hear the slightly amused tone in Malik's voice.

"So it _is_ a journal!" she exclaimed. "I thought it was."

"It's Priest Set's, too."

Isis smiled. "I'm going to go see how he's doing," she said.

She quickly went to the library. Seto looked up as she entered. He asked dryly, "Has Malik told you the good news? It's my past self's journal." Isis nodded and Seto added, "You must be thrilled."

"Why do you say that?"

Seto's voice did not lose its dry tone. "Because this is an important opportunity for me to learn about my past, is it not?"

"All that matters to me is that you find that girl," Isis lied with a straight face. "I didn't even think of that."

"Liar," Seto accused.

"Fine, so it did cross my mind," she admitted. Rather eager to change the subject, she added, "Did you learn anything about the girl?"

"Her soul monster is an extremely powerful dragon," he replied. "An extremely powerful _white_ dragon."

Isis gasped. "The Blue-Eyes!" she exclaimed.

Seto nodded. "And that's why my past self was interested in her." He said this almost defensively, as if fearing Isis would think otherwise. "He wanted its power."

"Are you sure that's all…?"

"If it weren't, don't you think he'd write it in his journal?"

Isis sighed and nodded, then began to leave. As she reached the door, Seto spoke up. "Her name is Kisara," he said.

Isis looked back and smiled. "Kisara," she repeated. "It's a nice name."


	5. Chapter five

Chapter Five

_Even before the dream started, Seto knew that it would be about the girl again. Most of his dreams were recently, and considering he had just discovered her identity, it was obvious that she would haunt him again that night._

_Before, though, his dreams had always echoed the first time he'd seen her. Usually, in the dream, she would be lying in his arms, unconscious, and then, with an apparent effort, she would open her deep blue eyes. She would stare up at him with a pleading look, and whispered words would appear in Seto's mind._

_It had been a while before Seto let himself recognize the Egyptian phrase: "Please, find me."_

_But tonight, Seto's dream was different. He seemed to stand in the typical ancient Egypt scenery, complete with towering pyramids in the distance. It was foggy. In front of him, half-hidden by the mist, was the girl. _

_She wasn't facing him and seemed unaware of his presence. However, when he started towards her, she moved forward as well, away from him._

"_Matte!" Seto exclaimed. His cry echoed back, and the word sounded strange to him. He realized that Japanese would mean nothing to this silver-haired girl._

_But he couldn't bring the Egyptian word to mind. The frustrating part was that he knew it, in some corner of his mind. But he couldn't remember…!!_

"_Matte," he repeated, knowing it was futile. "Onegai…" He ran towards her. She moved away, just as quickly._

"_Matte yo!" he cried again in frustration. "Matte! …Kisara!"_

_The girl stopped. She turned towards Seto. "Kisara…" she repeated. Then she spoke in Egyptian, but Seto understood it without effort. "That… that was my name." She smiled softly. "I'm so happy that you've found it."_

"_Kisara," Seto said again. He spoke to her in her own language, necessity bringing the words to his mouth easily. "Why are you running away from me?"_

"…" _The girl's deep blue eyes saddened. She opened her mouth to speak, but no words came out. Seto saw her shoulders droop with a sigh as she repeated the words "Please, find me."_

_The dream faded. "Wait!" Seto cried in Egyptian, remembering the word clearly now. He looked into the girl's sad, sapphire-bright eyes. They were the last thing to disappear as he awoke._

With the dream still fresh in his mind, Seto sat up in bed and sighed. The unnatural desire to find the girl lingered, and he tried to push it away. That had been one of the stronger dreams. Those ones really bothered him, the dreams—visions?—in which the girl's longing was echoed by his own, except it wasn't really his own. It was hers that he was feeling, or…

No. It couldn't be his past self's influence… could it? Was it the echo of an ancient love that he felt in those dreams? _Of course not_, Seto scoffed, scolding himself for being so unnecessarily poetic. _All he cared about was the Blue-Eyes White Dragon. There's no way he cared about anything else… and he certainly can't have loved her._

Seto knew the girl could be considered pretty, even beautiful. But she was weak. She hadn't fought back at all against those stoning her—unrightfully—she'd just given up, as though her death was inevitable. Acceptable.

It was unbelievable that such a soul could house the magnificent Blue-Eyes White Dragon. From what Seto understood—instinctively, to his ire—of a person's "soul monster," their Ka, its strength was supposed to be equal to that of its owner's will. And that certainly wasn't the case with Kisara.

Kisara. She'd told Seto's past self her name when she'd awoken at the palace, having been rescued by him. The girl, though weak in body at the time from nearly being killed, fervently promised to serve Set with her life, so grateful was she to the priest for saving her. Set had at first said there was nothing she could do, and invited her to stay at the palace. Later, he'd remembered what one of the other priests—Shadah—had said about her soul monster's strength, and he began to wonder if he could control it for himself.

That was all he cared about. It had to be.

But it shouldn't matter to Seto anyway. He rubbed his forehead, frustrated with how much his connection—his _supposed_ connection—to ancient Egypt had made itself apparent in his life recently. As if everything during Battle City hadn't been enough, now there were these dreams with Kisara in them, and sometimes feelings, very faint ones, that didn't seem familiar. Didn't seem like they were his. Because they weren't—they were Set's. And Seto didn't want Set's emotions. He didn't want anything to do with his past…

Perhaps that was why Isis had irritated him so much when they'd met—her perfect confidence in the Egyptian legends, her no-nonsense way of telling him that he was connected to the past, as if stating a simple fact. And it didn't help that, soon after their first conversation, the connection became noticeable, as if her presence had caused some sort of awakening in his mind.

But he'd grown less annoyed by her in the week he'd been at her home. And today, even though their conversation had already ended, he'd chosen to tell her Kisara's name for no reason at all.

In a way, he realized, he'd put his trust in Isis by telling her. Seto knew, after all, the importance of names to ancient Egyptians. Like in many other cultures, it was believed that to know a person's "true" name was to have great power over them; to erase a person's name from history was to make it so that they'd never existed.

Seto winced. Isis had told him that, when she'd invited him to the museum. Along with all that other nonsense about the Pharaoh and his past.

But now, she seemed to honestly wish for him to succeed in his search. For the most part, she allowed him to work alone as he wanted. And it was she who had convinced him to accept the fact he could read the scroll—Seto supposed he owed her some gratitude for that.

His opinion of her had transformed so much over the last week that sometimes Seto wondered if Isis was the one who'd changed. Of course, she was no longer pestering him to find out about his past; that was certainly a change, and one for the better. But it went beyond that.

_Has she always been this beautiful?_ The rogue question caught Seto by surprise. He shook his head to clear it. Isis? Beautiful?? But he supposed it was true. She did have a sort of exotic beauty to her, accentuated by her flawlessly dignified bearing.

Fine, so yes, Isis, beautiful. What did that have to do with Seto? It certainly didn't matter to him. She could be the ugliest hag in the world and he would still be at her home, trying to learn about another girl.

But she _was_ beautiful. It was a fact. And she was kind. And helpful.

But why should Seto care?

_And why does she care about me?_ Seto wondered in frustration. Why was she so determined to help him, no matter how much he pushed her away?

Seto lay down again in his bed. He was tired of thinking about Isis. But now he was too awake to go back to sleep. After lying in his bed for a moment, Seto threw the covers back in frustration and stood up. He'd just get an early start on the day's research instead, then.


	6. Chapter six

Chapter Six

That afternoon

Isis was glad to be home once again—everything at work that she had tried to put off the day before had come back to her today, and now she couldn't refuse the assignments. She had spent the day organizing three museum tours and checking up on several that were already underway. She was exhausted, not even thinking about Seto until she heard his voice as she passed the library on the way to her room.

"What, not interested today?"

Seto spoke the words almost without thinking. He was quite surprised—and a little offended, for some indiscernible reason—that Isis had walked right by the library without even glancing in. But he shrugged off the inexplicable feeling and smirked as Isis looked at him in puzzlement.

Because Isis was quite confused. _Since when does he care if I'm interested…?_ she questioned in her mind, bewildered. _Interested in what, anyway? In what he learned, or in him in general…?_ Flustered without really knowing why, she tried to force herself to think logically and not over-interpret Seto's question. _He's probably just being sarcastic anyway, and now I look stupid, don't I…_

An awkward silence passed. Watching Isis stand in the doorway, Seto felt his casual expression slip a notch. Had he offended her? Maybe she didn't really care, or didn't feel like talking to him today, or… Seto's smug look was completely gone now. Self-conscious, he took his gaze off of Isis and looked determinedly back at the scroll. "It's fine if you aren't interested," he muttered. "I… uh… just… never mind."

Seeing his embarrassment, Isis protested, "No, I'm interested! I was just busy worrying about things at work!" Cautiously, she entered the room, half-expecting Seto to have resolved not to tell her anything now.

He hadn't, though. Filled with a strange sense of relief that Isis was interested, he still wanted to talk to her. But she wouldn't get it out of him so easily… He smirked again, looking at Isis out of the corner of his eye. "Oh, so work is more important?"

Momentarily confused by the oxymoron of Seto's words to his expression, Isis then realized that his question was a challenge to a game. A debate. Fine, she would play. Teasingly, she announced, "Of course work is more important! I was organizing a museum exhibit—_just_ like the one I invited you to." She knew Seto would catch the hidden meaning in the statement.

"_Just_ like it, huh?" Seto faked a grimace, deciding to play along with Isis's joke. "Going to ruin some poor fool's life by telling him about his 'past'?"

"Her, actually." Isis spoke casually, keeping her face straight.

"Oh, I see. One of the Pharaoh's wives, perhaps?"

_Don't laugh, don't laugh, don't laugh_, Isis instructed herself firmly as she said aloud, with a perfectly solemn face, "Well, in fact, she was your wife. I was planning to introduce you two soon."

Isis's deadpan expression threw Seto off. _She couldn't really be serious… could she?!_ It was never possible to be sure with her.

Isis stared back at him as he searched her eyes for a sign of the joke. She watched his eyes widen in disbelief and horror as her serious look did not fade. But seeing his shocked expression, Isis couldn't stop her lips from curling into an unmistakable smirk.

Seto breathed an inaudible sigh of relief. "You weren't serious," he said accusingly.

Isis shook her head. "Of course not!" Seto glared at her, more than a little annoyed at being taken for such a fool.

Isis's eyes were fiercely triumphant as they met Seto's, but then she saw his irritation. She sighed, shook her head admonishingly, and said lightly, "Come now, Seto, must you be such a sore loser?"

Seto's ire did not diminish. "See if I try to tell _you_ anything ever again," he snapped, once again fixing his gaze on Set's journal.

Knowing that she had been dismissed, Isis sighed. Though surprised—hadn't he wanted to speak with her?—and he had started the challenge, not she—she nonetheless stood graciously and began to leave.

Seto peered at Isis's retreating form with some regret. She would just leave like that? Didn't she want to talk to him? And _why_ did he want to talk to her??

Just as she reached the door, he spoke up. "Aren't you even going to protest?"

She turned back to him, obviously surprised. "It's your choice," she replied quietly. "You don't have to tell me anything if you don't want to."

"And what if I do want to tell you?" The question escaped his lips before he could stop it.

Puzzled, Isis looked into Seto's eyes, not sure if he was simply testing her, or if he really did desire to share what he found. His unflinching stare did indeed seem to challenge her to give the "right" answer, but that was only on the surface. Beneath that… beneath that was something more. Something that made Isis's heart skip a beat…

Seto refused to let himself become uncomfortable under Isis's gaze. He wondered what she saw as her eyes searched his, what it was that had made her catch her breath a few seconds ago. "Well?" he asked harshly, shattering the fragile stillness of the moment.

Isis closed her eyes and inclined her head slightly, smiling demurely. "If you want to tell me, I would be very pleased to listen."

"Then why are you leaving?" Would she be angry at the obvious question, or overlook it?

Isis simply shrugged and went to sit on the table. "Who said I was leaving?" She leaned forward, a challenge on her face.

Their eyes met again. Isis could see her own determination to appear in control of the situation reflected back in Seto's expression. They each wanted, in some way, to control the other. _How strange_, thought Isis. _How selfish._

In Isis's eyes, Seto found… alikeness. Similarity between the two of them. It wasn't something he was expecting, so he was momentarily shaken. But he didn't look away. Their gazes were locked in a long moment that was half emotion, half staring contest.

At last, Isis broke the silence. "What did you want to share with me?" she asked softly.

Seto shook himself and finally looked away. He arbitrarily chose something he learned that day. "Kisara will only call Set 'High Priest.' "

"Really? …Well, she's very polite."

"She's used to being respectful. Her parents sold her as a slave when she was a child."

Isis's eyes widened in alarm. "That's horrible! Her own parents sold her?"

"Because she has pale skin and pale hair. It was hardly common at that time, you know."

"Yes, but…" Isis shuddered. "They sold their daughter…"

"Set first found out when the handmaid helping Kisara dress saw old whip scars on her back. Then he rode out to her village—on his 'beautiful black Arab horse,' which he wouldn't shut up about—to see if the villagers could tell him anything. As it turned out, Kisara had had several masters, and all but the most recent had died mysteriously when they mistreated her. Because of the Blue-Eyes, probably."

"She would summon it to protect herself, I suppose," Isis agreed.

"But…" Seto frowned. From what Set had written, Kisara knew nothing of Ka-monsters. And summoning one wasn't something you could do by accident—in most cases, Ka-monsters would only appear if their owner specifically called for them. But it was unlikely that Kisara would have the sense to do such a thing. She didn't seem very clever at protecting herself.

"Yes?"

"It just doesn't seem like her, I guess. To have that much sen… strength. That much aggression. It doesn't fit her character. It's not how I remem…" Seto stopped suddenly.

Isis's eyes widened. "How you remember…?" she breathed.

Seto hadn't meant to say that. He had been trying to ignore the fact that he could actually remember bits and pieces of his past life, especially after he read the journals. Obviously, he was failing. Seto scowled, even more upset to realize that he was trembling slightly.

Isis noticed Seto's frown—he was clearly bothered by having Set's memories. _And why not_, Isis thought. _He feels he has no business remembering these things. They don't matter to him. But he has to deal with them anyway._

"Seto…" she began, but she didn't know what to say. There was probably nothing she could say that could be both fully comforting and fully sincere. After all, her pity was only because she cared that it bothered him—she would have gladly accepted memories of her own past life, a priestess in the Pharaoh's court, had they not eluded her. Slowly, uncertainly, she reached out a comforting hand, but before she could lay it on Seto's shoulder—

"Isis, it's suppertime." Malik. Pulling her hand back quickly, Isis turned to face her younger brother. He continued, "Would you like to join us tonight, Seto?"

Silently, Seto shook his head. He hadn't eaten with the Ishtars since the first night, and tonight especially he wanted to be alone to think.

Malik shrugged and walked away. Isis followed him. As she walked, she looked at the hand that she had reached out with. Was it just the flickering torchlight, or was her hand trembling? She lifted her other hand and compared the two. Yes, the one was trembling. _I… I wanted to help him… to comfort him… …to touch him…_

Seto sat with his arms crossed, frowning. Isis had been about to touch him—probably just put her hand on his arm or something else that was considered kind and caring. Usually Seto hated that kind of emotional nonsense.

So why was he disappointed when Isis lowered her hand?


	7. Chapter seven

Chapter Seven

Isis wasn't usually one to question her emotions—normally she just accepted them for what they were. She loved Rishid and Malik because they were her brothers. She respected the Pharaoh because it was her duty. To Isis, things just were the way they were.

But this. This was new, the way she felt towards Seto. And it wasn't a simple, one-dimensional feeling, either. It was many emotions melded together, some of them new to her, but all of them confusing. It was care, respect, desire, anguish. It made no sense, and Isis liked her world to make sense.

And yet, despite that, she didn't dislike her mess of feelings for Seto. Something about the way her heart jumped when she saw him, something about the way she felt when they were talking with each other, something about it was pleasant. And it was delightful to let those feelings wash through her when they were near each other. It felt like a secret, a special secret for her to guard.

_But why?_ Isis asked herself as she lay in bed that night. _What are these feelings?_ _Could they be… l…?_

Even in her own thoughts, Isis couldn't bring herself to finish the word. _That's… that's impossible… isn't it? I can't lo—…like him…_ She gave a faint, self-ridiculing snicker at the euphemism she had chosen for herself. It made her feel like one of the schoolgirl characters in the cartoons she'd watched sometimes, bashful and naïve.

"Love." Isis whispered the word into the silence of her dark bedroom. _No, that can't be what I'm feeling,_ she thought. _Such a small word. There's no way it could describe such a complicated thing. _

But somewhere deep in her heart, she knew the truth. As it drifted to the focus of her consciousness, she reluctantly acknowledged it. _Love…_ _ I am in love with Seto Kaiba._ She could hardly believe it. Love was the stuff of fairy tales, of novels. It didn't happen to her…

_And why on earth should I love him? He's… he's… he's five years younger than I am!_ Isis was twenty-one; Seto was only sixteen, the same age as Malik. And it wasn't that Isis didn't love her little brother, certainly not; but that was a different kind of love. She often regarded Malik as someone to be protected, watched over. It wasn't like that with Seto.

Of course, to say that Seto was only sixteen was misleading. He acted far, far older than that. His self-possession was impressive, as was the way he had of making people feel insignificant. His mature, often haughty confidence was part of what had surprised Isis so much when she'd first met with him at the museum. Instead of looking down on him as a younger, less experienced young man, she had found herself thinking of him as if he were her age, worthy of her respect.

_Not that it matters to him._ Isis didn't even bother trying to fool herself—she knew Seto had hated her during Battle City. She had been a threat to the way he thought, the way he saw the world. During their duel especially, he had been rude to a point that would have been unbearable if Isis had not foreseen it so many times.

But he was the one who had affected Isis most in Battle City. It was ironic, almost. She had come hoping to convince him of the truth of his past; he had instead shown her the security of an unknown future.

When she'd tried to tell him that, thank him for it, he'd given a scornful answer and sauntered off. After the duel, though, Isis had sensed Seto's distaste for her fading slightly. She was no longer a threat to him, after all. He had proved her faith in the Millennium Tauk wrong—at least he thought he had—and he'd won the duel. Isis was sure he'd thought of her then as a harmless—if annoying—crazy woman with no proof for her fanciful stories.

And yet, when he began to receive his own proof for her "stories," undeniable proof, hadn't Isis and her family been the first ones he turned to? It seemed too much for Isis to hope that this meant something about how he felt towards her. And a week and a half ago, it wouldn't have mattered to her at all to know how Seto felt about her.

Then a vicious idea in the back of Isis's mind made itself known. _It won't matter in another two and a half weeks, either._ Isis's heart gave a sudden twist of sorrow—no, it was fear. She was terrified of Seto having to leave. She wanted… well, she didn't know what she wanted. But she loved him, and she _didn't_ want him to leave.

Isis shook her head desperately, trying to clear it of the knowledge that, no matter how much she willed it otherwise, Seto _would_ have to leave soon. The idea fell silent again, and slowly, Isis fell asleep.

She awoke the next morning feeling less than completely refreshed. Looking at her watch, though, she saw that this was because it was only 5:30. But it was still too late to go back to bed and wake up in time for work. Isis sighed, then got out of bed and changed into one of her work dresses. She began braiding her hair as she started towards the dining room. As she passed the library, she glanced in out of instinct, not really expecting to see Seto so early in the morning.

But he was there. He must have heard her passing, because he looked up. "Good morning, Isis."

"Good morning," Isis replied. She smiled at him, acting perfectly serene. But her heart sped up, and she suddenly felt very awkward. _So this is what I get for being honest with myself,_ she thought dryly. She took a cautious step into the library, towards him. "Did you sleep well?"

Seto shrugged, but Isis saw a slight frown pull at his mouth. Out of concern, she pressed, "You didn't?"

"I just had a stupid dream, that's all."

"About Kisara?" Isis guessed.

Curtly, Seto nodded. Noticing that he didn't seem overly excited about her presence, Isis hadn't gone in any farther; she was considering leaving when Seto said, "She says I've forgotten something." At his willingness to talk, Isis dared to take another step in. He continued, with just a hint of bitterness, "But I didn't forget anything, because I didn't know anything about her in the first place. _She's_ thinking of Priest Set."

Isis gave a half-sincere smile of pity. Seto must have noticed her lack of enthusiasm, because he gave a mirthless smirk and said, "You obviously agree with her, though."

Shrugging, Isis replied, "It doesn't really matter what I think, does it?"

Looking down, Seto agreed, "Finally you understand." But he didn't say it cruelly. His tone was offhand, nonchalant. Then he seemed to notice that Isis had come all the way into the library. "Did you want something?" he asked.

"Ah—no, I guess not," Isis said quietly, shrugging.

Seto was looking at her thoughtfully. Then he said, quite abruptly, "You were right."

Isis blinked in confusion. "I was…?"

"When you said he cared about her. He loved her."

"Oh." Isis let her mind process this information, then asked, "How can you tell?"

Seto looked away very quickly. "Just the way he writes about her," he muttered.

Isis sensed that he wasn't being perfectly truthful… but she decided to let it go. "Do you think that's why you feel like you have to research her? Because Set loved her?"

Seto scowled and turned his head sharply to look at Isis. "I'm researching her so she'll leave me alone," he said harshly. "That's _all_."

Surprised by Seto's sudden defensive tone, Isis didn't reply for a second. When she did, it was in a gentle voice. "It's very hard for you, isn't it?"

Seto glared at her, but his eyes softened when they met her sympathetic ones. "It's annoying, to say the least."

Isis nodded, and then looked down. "You probably won't believe me…" she said quietly, "but I know the feeling. I was terrified the first time I received a vision from the Millennium Tauk." She raised her eyes slowly. Seto was staring at her with disbelief and his usual scorn, but he was curious too. Softly, Isis continued, "It's frightening to know things you shouldn't, isn't it?"

She could feel Seto searching her eyes to see if she was serious, if he could trust her. As she held his gaze, her heart sped up again. Something about the moment seemed magical… Isis could feel her hand trembling; she wanted again to touch Seto, to let him know that she cared about him…

But then Seto snorted and ripped his gaze away. "Who said I was scared?" he retorted, his voice sounding oddly strained. Awkward, slightly disappointed, Isis dropped her gaze. Then Seto continued in the same strange-sounding voice, "Thanks, though." Isis's head snapped up again in surprise. Seto looked unusually vulnerable as he said, "I… I know what you mean."

Isis nodded, knowing that for Seto, such a confession was not lightly spoken; it took a lot of trust for him to say it. _Thank you, Seto…_

She felt her heart swell with her newly-discovered love. _I could trust him too… I could tell him…!_ Uncertainly, she opened her mouth to speak. "S… Seto…" _I love you. Seto, I love you. It would be so easy to say… _

"Yes?" Seto asked casually, not even looking up fully.

"Um…" Suddenly, Isis froze and her courage disappeared. Her throat seemed blocked. She swallowed, and then said, "Do you want to eat breakfast with me?"


	8. Chapter eight

Chapter Eight

Seto sat at the Ishtars' dining table, staring down at his breakfast—a bowl of Rice Krispies, of all things. The modern cereal had seemed out-of-place in the tomb, but when Seto had given Isis a dubious look, she'd simply explained that the cereal was Malik's favorite.

Since then, they hadn't spoken. Neither wanted to be the one to start talking, it appeared. Seto's logic was that he shouldn't start the conversation when Isis was the one who had invited him to eat with her. But who knew what she was thinking right now?

Without raising his head, Seto looked at the Egyptian woman out of the corner of his eyes. Her gaze was fixed on her cereal as she stirred it unnecessarily. Then her eyes inched up as well, and their stares met for just a split second, but with simultaneous sharp intakes of breath, they lowered their eyes back to their cereal.

_This is ridiculous_, Seto thought. _Why did she even ask if I wanted to eat breakfast with her, when she doesn't want to talk?_ So this time, when he looked up at her, it was blatant. _Let her be nervous. Let her wonder why I'm staring._ Seto was annoyed, and he wanted her to know it.

But if she felt his stare, she didn't give an indication, didn't look up. So, undeterred, Seto just watched her. _She's so proper_, he observed. She sat up straight, with her elbows far away from the table. She lifted her spoon all the way to her mouth. Her manner, so clean-cut and dignified, so worldly, contrasted with her dusty, outdated home. _Does she really belong in this ancient tomb,_ Seto wondered, _shut off from the world?_ It didn't seem to fit her; she seemed more suited to running a company, something along those lines. But maybe she sensed that, too. Maybe that was why she went off to work every morning…

Seto opened his mouth with a question, then closed it uncertainly. After a second, though, he asked, "Work's an escape for you, isn't it?"

Now Isis's head snapped up. Her expression was one of surprise, with a little bit of apprehension. "An escape…?" she repeated wonderingly. "An escape from what?"

Seto gestured to their surroundings with a wide sweep of his arms. "From this!" he exclaimed, amazed that she had to ask. "From this… this hole in the ground! From the world you live in!" He knew he was being a little harsher than necessary, but he didn't care. _So what if she's offended?_

She wasn't, though. She looked thoughtful as she said, "I suppose it is nice to have a reason that I _have_ to leave the tomb every day…" She paused. "So yes, work is an escape, if only from the laws of my destiny."

Seto gave a slight snort and looked at Isis disdainfully. "Ah, of course. Your _destiny_."

Isis still didn't seem hurt, though, just puzzled. "You still won't believe?" she asked quietly.

"_No_," Seto said firmly. "I may have to believe in your _fairy tales_ about the Pharaoh and my 'past life.' But I will not let myself be trapped by my so-called _destiny_, like you do."

Isis closed her eyes and gave a soft, faint smile. "Yes," she said, "it doesn't surprise me when you say that." She opened her eyes again and met Seto's. "That's what you taught me, after all."

Rolling his eyes, Seto looked away. He could still feel Isis's eyes on him though. "What?" he asked irritably.

"Why did you ask if work is an escape? It seems like an odd question," she stated, her brows knitted together.

Seto paused, indecisive. Why _had_ he asked? _Because I want to figure her out,_ he answered himself. _I want to understand her._ But… he couldn't tell her that. That would seem too caring, too… too intimate. So he settled for another eye roll and a derisive, "I asked simply because it seems logical that you'd want to escape _this_." He crossed his arms and tried to appear casually scornful.

Isis frowned, finally showing a sign of being hurt. But soon her eyes widened and her frown lessened. She looked at Seto thoughtfully for a moment and said quietly, "I understand." She stood and continued, "I'm leaving for work now. Good luck on your research today." Then she exited, leaving Seto to wonder just what it was she understood.

_I was speaking with Kisara today when Akunadin came into my room. When he saw that Kisara was with me, he suddenly became very strange. He exclaimed, "So **this** is the blue-eyed girl!" and started firing questions at her, like who her parents were and where she lived, if she had a patron god or goddess, things like that. Then he asked her if she knew what a Ka-monster was. When she replied that she had no idea, just as she's told me so many times, he seemed as surprised as I was the first time she said it. Then a somewhat frightening look came onto his face and he said, "Maybe I could show you sometime. In the dungeons—"_

_I cut him off there. "She's not going down there," I told him. _

_He nodded for me to follow him out the door, to speak privately. Then he pointed out that if her Ka was as strong as Shadah said, she would be in no danger. Now I don't know… but I don't want anything to happen to this girl. I really care about her. She seems to need my protection so much…_

Seto stopped reading for a moment and rubbed his temples. _What's so terrifying about the dungeons?_ he wondered in annoyance. Set had yet to mention in his journal what would happen if Kisara were taken down there. _That's the problem with journals. They don't go into any detail at all._

Of course, Seto had no doubt that he would have been able to find the information locked somewhere in his mind. More and more often, Set's memories were merging with Seto's own. It was aggravating—Seto would suddenly just _know_ things that he shouldn't have known.

But at least that was better than the emotions. Those were starting to appear too. Seto had lied when he'd told Isis that the way he could see Set's love for Kisara was how the priest wrote about her in the journals.

Seto could feel it—the longing invaded his mind. He would try to push it away, but it was useless. The assaulting love came at him from all sides, pulsing in his mind and heart. It made Seto pity the blue-eyed girl sometimes, although he naturally felt nothing but contempt for her and her weak demeanor. And if Seto really let down his guard, the foreign feeling could take over completely… so sometimes he loved her too.

That was what he hated, because when that happened, he had little to no control over his thoughts and feelings. All he could think about at those times was Kisara—trying to find out about her, understand her…

Like he'd wanted to understand Isis that morning at breakfast. Seto frowned. He hadn't realized how similar those two feelings were. All he'd thought about was how strange it was that Isis interested him now—before, he hadn't cared for Isis at all, but now he wanted… what? What was it that prompted him to start conversations with her, and what caused him to enjoy being with her? Why did he now want to know everything about the Egyptian woman who had bothered him so much before?

It couldn't possibly be for the same reason he wanted to understand Kisara…? No. Seto wouldn't even allow himself to contemplate the idea. _That would mean that I… no. Impossible._

Shaking his head to clear it of the thought that was trying to make itself known, Seto glanced back down at the journal, but then he shoved it away from him. _What if I **didn't** research Kisara?_ he wondered fiercely. _It was only after I started that Set's love started taking over. And now these… feelings… not love!!... but these feelings for Isis…_ Everything was just so confusing at the Ishtars' home. Seto would much rather be in America, working on his amusement park, or at his home in Japan… anywhere but in this "hole in the ground" in Egypt, researching a past he didn't want.

But the thing was, it was hardly the first time such an idea had occurred to Seto. He had thought of leaving several times before, but each time he'd been compelled to stay. In fact, he had been contemplating leaving when he found the journal. But then he'd found it, and suddenly it had seemed so urgent that he understand Kisara. Set's memories started to appear in Seto's mind—and the priest's emotions began forcing themselves on him, stronger than anything he'd felt before. If only Seto could get rid of them!

But if Seto left the Ishtars' home without finding out all there was to know about Kisara, he knew the memories would continue to haunt him. So for now he was trapped. He would just have to deal with Set's love for Kisara.

And with his feelings for Isis. Whatever they were. But they weren't love.

They couldn't possibly be love…


	9. Chapter nine

Chapter Nine

Seto straightened, feeling a slight ache in his back after being hunched over his scroll for so long, and ran his hand through his hair. Was…was his heart pounding…? Yes, it was. Because of what he'd just read…

Seto tried to get control of his thoughts. "So _finally_ he decides to tell me what's so important about the dungeons," he commented aloud, sarcastically. "After a whole week of reading this stupid thing…" But it took some effort just to summon up that sarcasm. His mind was mostly focused on the journal… and on how clearly he could see in his mind everything he'd just read…

He couldn't wait for Isis to come home. Over the week in which Seto had had the journals, it had become a habit for the two of them to meet every evening and discuss his discoveries. Isis always seemed so interested in what he'd learned… and as strange as the idea was to Seto, he actually liked being with her. Maybe she would help him think of what he'd found today as simply information… rather than…

Isis was glad to be home, as usual. Glad to get a chance to talk with Seto. She went straight to the library. "Good afternoon," she said as she reached the library door.

Still distracted by what he'd read, Seto nodded distantly at the Egyptian woman as she entered and sat down at the table he used.

"Did you find out anything interesting today?" she asked him lightly.

He nodded again and, wondering where to begin, glanced down at his journal—no, _Priest Set's_ journal. Why had he suddenly thought …?

Isis saw that Seto's brows were furrowed. "Not bad-interesting, I hope."

Seto shook his head, clearing it of the thought. "Just… really strange-interesting," he muttered. "Did you know…" He trailed off.

"Know what?" Isis prompted.

"…that a person's Ba and Ka can combine?"

Isis shook her head. "No, I had no idea," she said as her mind grasped the surprising information. "…Do Kisara's do that?"

Seto nodded. Normally, it was only a person's Ka that went into their soul monster, if they were indeed strong enough to have one. But in Kisara's case, her Ba, her consciousness, was part of her dragon too. "That's what makes Blue-Eyes so powerful," he explained.

"That's good to know," Isis said. "That bothered you before, didn't it? How her soul was so weak and her monster was so powerful?" Seto only shrugged, to Isis's puzzlement. "It didn't bother you?"

"Yes, it did," Seto said, a little too hurriedly. It had certainly bothered him at the beginning of the week—how Kisara's demeanor contrasted with the supposed strength of her Ka. But since Set wasn't concerned with such things, it had started to matter less… much to Seto's annoyance.

Isis noticed Seto's frown. _Time to abandon this trail of conversation._ "So…" She cast her mind about for something to bring up. "Did Set get to see the Blue-Eyes, or was Kisara just talking about it?"

"He got to see it," Seto replied. "Kisara doesn't know it exists."

"She doesn't?"

"It only comes out when she's unconscious. Because it's her Ba _and_ her Ka."

"Oh, right." Isis nodded. Both would have to be available for the two to merge, and if Kisara were conscious, her consciousness wouldn't be available. That made sense. "May I ask why the Blue-Eyes was revealed?"

"Because Akunadin—that guy I told you about—is a jerk," Seto said shortly. "A selfish jerk."

"…Oh." Isis was surprised by Seto's very succinct answer.

But then Seto continued, "He knew about the dragon's power because one of the other priests told him. So he decided he needed to test it."

"Test it?" Isis repeated in alarm.

Seto spoke brusquely, with closed eyes, letting the foreign memory progress in his mind. "In the dungeons, he had a system where he set criminals against each other and hoped their soul monsters would get stronger. He decided that Kisara needed to be part of that."

"Was she okay?"

"Well, when she first entered the 'arena,' she just _gave up_. Just stood there, didn't even try to _run_." Set had been shocked; Seto could feel the emotion as if it were his own as he related the story. "…I summoned my own Ka-monster to help."

_I…?_ Isis noticed Seto's use of first person, but didn't mention it.

"I had my Ka cut through the chains holding up the platforms and grabbed them before I fell. But one of the bandits had a spider-monster, so it spun a web and not only saved himself but also tied up my Ka."

"And Kisara…?"

"I was holding her. She was unconscious, though. And that's when the Blue-Eyes appeared, saved the day, etc." Seto opened his eyes and added, "Then Akunadin said I—" He stopped, his eyes widening. Quickly, he ran his mind over what he'd just said. His heart sank. He'd used "I" to refer to Set the entire time.

Isis could guess why Seto had paused. "It doesn't matter, Seto," she said softly.

Scowling deeply, Seto continued his story with a fierce determination. "Akunadin said that _Set_ should be the new owner of the Blue-Eyes, and that all they would have to do was remove Kisara's soul so I—_Set_ could absorb it with the Millennium Rod. I found—_Set_ found that utterly ridiculous, because that would kill Kisara. But Akunadin still wanted m—_him_ to have the dragon's power." Seto found that his fists were curled, and he was breathing harder than normal. _Why do I keep saying "I"?? We're different! I'm not him!! _

Isis looked at the young man in pity. Each time he had "corrected" himself, putting his story in third person, his voice had grown louder and more desperate. "Seto…"

Suddenly, Seto snapped. "What?! Are you going to tell me that it's a part of my past that I can't escape from? Going to tell me that it's fate, I should just accept it?!"

Slightly surprised by Seto's outburst, Isis didn't reply for a moment. Then she said quietly, "No, I'm not going to say that, Seto." _How could I? I love you. I don't want to hurt you._ She met his eyes; they were angry, glaring, but also afraid. "I know this is hard for you. And… as much as the past is important to me, I wish… for your sake… that you didn't have to go through this."

All the energy seemed to go out of Seto at once. He slumped over the table, resting his forehead on one hand as he pushed his—_Priest Set's_—journal away with the other. _I… I'm **not** Set. He's… not important to me. I don't need his memories. And I don't **want** them!!_ But he couldn't fight them off. No matter what he did recently, Set's memories flooded his mind.

He was trembling. He felt his eyes burning with… tears? Yes. Angry, frustrated, confused tears.

"Seto…" Isis said softly. _This is so hard for him. He doesn't deserve this… Oh, Seto, I'm so sorry you have to feel this way…_ "It's alright," she whispered. Hesitantly, she reached out her hand and placed it on Seto's shoulder.

He started at her touch and stood so quickly that his chair fell over. Isis withdrew her hand immediately, looking up to discern Seto's expression. "Seto…!" _Did I offend him? Is he angry with me? I… I shouldn't have touched him…!_

Seto refused to look at her as he strode to the door of the library. _I can't let her see me cry… I can't—!_

"Please wait, Seto!" Isis exclaimed.

Seto stopped, but didn't turn around, didn't turn his face towards her. "What?" he asked, in a voice that mercifully showed no sign of his tears.

"I…" Isis's heart was pounding as she stood. "I… Seto, I really…" _Seto, I love you._ "I r-really… c-care about you." She was stuttering. "I… I lo…"

Finally Seto turned, meeting her eyes. He had managed to control his tears for a moment, but he knew the fear and anger still showed on his face. _What is she saying?_ Seto wondered, bewildered. _She can't mean that she…!_ His eyes widened in realization. _No, please, I don't want to deal with that right now. _

Isis bit her lip as Seto's eyes met hers. _He looks like he's disgusted with me!_ she thought, alarmed. _Does… does he hate me that much?_ She lowered her gaze in humiliation. "I really feel sorry for you, Seto," she whispered. "That's… that's all I wanted to say." Then she sat down at the table again—her legs wouldn't hold her up anymore. Seto turned away sharply and went straight to his room.

Isis buried her head in her arms. Now it was she trying not to cry. Her shoulders shook as she tried to control herself. _The way he looked at me… like he didn't want to hear me at all… like he thought I was a nuisance… He must hate me……_

Still trembling, Seto sat down on his bed, ready for the tears to come.

But now they didn't. Now he was confused. _She… she was going to say… that she loves me._ He was certain of it. But why did the thought make him glad? Was it possible that he… he loved her? _No! I… I can't! We're… too different… and… and besides, I love Kisara—wait, no I don't! Priest Set loves Kisara… and I… _ Then Seto thought of the way the priest's emotions pressed at him, forcing their way into his heart.

_I do love Kisara…_ he admitted helplessly. _But Isis… I… I like her too…_


	10. Chapter ten

Chapter Ten

As she walked home from work, Isis was thinking about Seto. It was hardly a rare thing these days. Most of the time her thoughts were consumed by the Japanese boy, more often now that she had discovered her love for him.

But when she'd tried to confess that love… Isis shuddered, remembering Seto's expression. He'd looked so angry and revolted. So since that time two days ago, Isis had tried to quell her love for him. _He doesn't like me_, she told herself firmly. _It's just a stupid "crush" that will get me nowhere_.

It did absolutely no good. No matter what logic she used, she still loved Seto. Even when she reminded herself that Seto had to leave in less than two weeks, she felt no change in her affections.

She reached the tomb and pulled open the trapdoor slowly. Today she was less willing to see Seto. Less willing to hear him talk about the blue-eyed girl, Kisara. Lately, whenever Seto mentioned her name, his eyes would light up and Isis would feel a twinge of something… jealousy? Isis almost laughed at the thought. There was no reason to be jealous of Kisara. She had been dead for three thousand years. At best, she was reincarnated in a form that Seto had yet to meet. _There's no way Seto would fall in love with a girl he's never met._ That just wasn't in his character.

Closing the trapdoor behind her, Isis walked down the stone steps with a little more confidence. Kisara was… not insignificant, but unimportant, to Isis at least. Except for the fact that the memory of her had driven Seto to research at the Ishtars' home, she couldn't affect Isis.

By the time she reached the library, Isis's worry was gone.

"Good afternoon, Seto."

Seto only nodded, his eyes on the scroll. Isis walked in, sat at her usual chair, and waited for him to start talking.

After about a minute, Seto raised his eyes and leaned back. He spoke carefully. "He really loves Kisara a lot. But I don't think she thinks of him as any more than a master." He paused for a moment, then inclined his head with a barely-perceptible smile of what Isis thought was probably relief. Seto had used "he" to refer to Set, rather than the "I" he had struggled with before.

"They ate supper together for the first time." Seto closed his eyes. His face took on a thoughtful, slightly troubled look, as though he were remembering something. After another minute, he spoke again. "I kissed her."

Isis bit her lip, wondering if she should point out Seto's slip into first person. Deciding it was better not to, she asked, "What was her reaction?"

Seto shook his head, eyes still shut. "She didn't react at first," he explained. "Not until I…" His troubled look grew more pronounced. "Not until I tried to… to undress her," he said lowly. He sounded ashamed. "Then she jumped in fear, and I noticed. She still wouldn't have done anything though. She kept saying she was my servant. I didn't want her to be my servant, I wanted her to love me. On her own will, naturally, but I wanted it so much…"

A terrible thought started to run through Isis's mind. _If Set loved Kisara that much… in the past… then what about now?_ Isis was used to the circular nature of time. What if Set's feelings were reborn in Seto…?

With some nervousness, she asked, "So… nothing happened, did it?"

"No," Seto replied, sounding a little sad. His eyes opened and he sighed. "Nothing happened. I felt really bad though. I had almost…" Then he stiffened. After a pause, he gritted his teeth and asked Isis, "I did it again, didn't I?"

Isis nodded sympathetically. Seto didn't need to specify what "it" was: using first-person. "Should I have mentioned it earlier?" she inquired, worried.

Seto shook his head. "Just… next time…" He shook his head again, eyes closed, a scowl on his face. "Can you go away for now?"

With a nod, Isis stood, not offended by Seto's abrupt request. It was hard for him, she knew, to have his past self's memories. For those memories to be strong enough to seem like his own…

Just before Isis reached the door, Seto spoke from behind her. "Wait." Isis turned back in surprise. Seto's fist was clenched and he was staring at it as if it was the only thing that existed. "Isis, will you help me with something?" he asked.

Isis nodded, realized Seto couldn't see that, and said quietly, "What would you like?"

"Is there any way…" He trailed off.

"Any way to what, Seto?"

Seto bit his lip. "Is there any way that I could find her reincarnation? Like you found Yuugi and me. I want to find Kisara. I want to meet her."

Isis held back a surprised gasp. "Wh… what do you know about her that might help?" She had been about to ask why he wanted to meet her, but she changed her question at the last moment. It shouldn't matter to Isis if he wanted to find the blue-eyed girl. Kisara was part of his past, so she would be part of his present. That was how things worked.

Seto sighed. "I know her name was Kisara. I know she has silver hair and light skin and blue eyes. I know she became the Blue-Eyes White Dragon."

For a moment, Isis was torn between pity for Seto and a strange relief for herself. She let the pity show on her face. "Seto, if she _became_ the Blue-Eyes, as you said, then it's more likely that she has no reincarnation, especially with the Blue-Eyes born again as a card."

Seto shook his head. "Well, it's not so much that she _became_ it…" he said hesitantly, sounding as though he were just now trying to figure out another word for it. "Her Ba and her Ka combined to form it."

Isis's pity intensified. "That means she became it, Seto," she said gently. "The two parts of her soul are intertwined now. She can't be reborn."

Seto stood abruptly, wild-eyed. "But I have to find her!" he cried. "I—I have to!"

"Why?" Isis exclaimed. She was… afraid. And it was showing. _Why is he asking me this? Why would he care about her?!_ She tried to get control over herself as she continued, "You've already found her. You have her soul as the Blue-Eyes. Why would you need her to be human?"

"Because I—" Seto stopped in the middle of his sentence. His face, so taut and determined before, now seemed to sag with… helplessness? "I love her," he whispered. He sat back down, looking very weak. "I love her. I want to find her."

_Love…!_ Suddenly Isis was very aware of the dull thump of her heart. It was all she could feel. Other than that constant beat, she was completely numb. _There's no way Seto would fall in love with a girl he's never met._ The thought came back to mock her. She swallowed hard. "You love her…?"

Seto must have seen her shock, because he bowed his head, but not before Isis could see his cheeks flush deep red. Still numb, Isis whispered, "How? How can you love her?"

Seto gave a great shudder and covered his face with his hands. He didn't speak for a minute. Then, in a trembling voice, he said, "I… I can't help it… It isn't my love, it's because of _him_…" Shoulders quivering, he gave a choked sob.

The sob brought Isis out of her unfeeling trance as another fierce stab of pity wrenched her heart. "Oh, Seto…" she murmured, her voice wavering a little. Seto didn't look up; he only hunched over further, as if protecting himself. For a few moments, Isis stared at him uncertainly. Then, knowing only her deep sympathy for Seto, she closed the gap between the two of them with a few halting steps. She placed a tender hand under his chin and lifted it so that his eyes met hers.

She caught her breath. Who was it that had said eyes were the window to the soul? Seto's were far more than that. Deep and captivating, they were a ship's portals, looking out into a deep sea of emotion. Waves of confusion and fear tumbled over one another as he held her gaze.

But fighting its way to the surface of Seto's tumultuous stare was an unfathomable longing… the same longing that filled Isis as her eyes searched his, asking, begging, _is this okay?_, but in the end it didn't matter because she bent towards him anyway and her eyes closed and her lips met his in a soft kiss. A warm feeling filled Isis and she let herself fall into it. Seto's hand slid around her neck as he began to return her kiss. _Ohhh……_

When Isis finally straightened, she was smiling faintly. Seto's caressing hand withdrew slowly from her neck; she missed its warmth.

Then they both seemed to realize at the same moment what they'd just done. As wide eyes met wide eyes, Isis saw her own feelings reflected in Seto's: trepidation, shock, and a bewildered, overwhelming question of _what just happened?_ For almost a minute, neither of them moved.

Then, trembling, Isis turned and fled.

She ran all the way to her room and threw herself on her bed. _How could I do that how could I oh gods I just… oh gods how could I do something like that?_ She raised a shaking hand to her mouth. She could still feel Seto's lips on hers…

_I kissed him,_ Isis thought, stunned. Then, _No… we kissed._ That was more accurate, because he had kissed her back.

Isis's heart was pounding. _Oh gods, how could I do that? Right after he said he loves **Kisara**, I just… I kissed him… _

_But… if he loves Kisara, then why…? Does he love me too…?!_

Isis covered her face with her hands. She was so confused…


	11. Chapter eleven

Chapter Eleven

"_Kisara, I… I think you should leave the palace."_

Seto was caught in the grip of a memory. His head burned whenever he tried to pull away from, so he helplessly accepted it.

_The priest Set was sitting on his bed; Kisara was standing near him. The first thing she said when Set told her she should leave was, predictably, "But then I will not be able to serve you…"_

_Set sighed. "For the thousandth time, I don't want you to be a servant! I want…" He met her eyes. " I want you to love me."_

_Breaking Set's gaze, Kisara began to speak, but Set shook his head as she uttered the word "servant."_

"_I told you, I don't want you as a servant. And there's no way I'll **force** you to love me."_

"_High Priest, I will willingly…"_

"_No." Set looked at the blue-eyed girl longingly, but said, "That's one of the reasons I want you to leave. I don't want something like what happened at supper a few days ago…" He reddened slightly, still ashamed by his actions on that day. "…to get out of hand. And besides, you hate being here, don't you?"_

_Slowly, Kisara nodded. "Yes," she whispered. "I'm sorry, High Priest."_

_He shook his head. "It's fine. I understand." Then he paused. There was another reason, but he didn't want to frighten her… However, it was probably best to tell her. "I'm also afraid for your safety if you continue to stay here."_

_The girl looked up. "My safety?"_

"_Akunadin… does not seem to value human life. He wants…" Kisara still didn't know about her soul monster. "He wants something you have. I am afraid he will kill you for it."_

_This information upset her, but still she stuttered, "I-I am bound to your service. If… if I leave, then…"_

"_Then you will be carrying out my order," Set said firmly. "I order you to leave as soon as possible."_

_Finally, Kisara bowed in agreement. "As you command, High Priest."_

At last, the memory released Seto. He shuddered, still unused to the ferocity with which the memories presented themselves in his mind.

But he was also filled with relief. _She's… she's leaving the palace,_ he thought. _That means Set will have no more to do with her, which means there can be nothing more to research! I'm… I'm free of it…_ Seto was… excited, in a way. Excited that he would be able to escape from his memories—and his reluctant love—of the blue-eyed girl and return to normal life.

_And leave Isis._ Suddenly, Seto hesitated. Did he want to get away from Isis? His feelings for her seemed to be exactly like his inherited feelings for Kisara, and he knew those were love. But to say that he _loved_ Isis…

And there had been yesterday, too. Isis had just… kissed him. Seto had been utterly shocked by it… but… not in a bad way. He had liked it. A lot.

So did he love Isis? Slowly, Seto answered his own question. _Yes. I love Isis. I… I love her._ It was almost a relief to admit it.

But somehow, it still made him angry. Ever since he had come to the Ishtars' home, he had been _feeling_ things so much more. It wasn't something he liked. And that, more than anything else, made him want to escape. To go home, deal with his company again. It was easier not to feel…

"Seto?" Isis stood in the doorway to the library, head bowed. She seemed very awkward, probably because of yesterday's kiss. "Would you like to tell me what you discovered today?"

She was giving him a choice, Seto realized immediately. The choice to reject her presence if he was angry with her. He was uncertain for a moment, caught up between two thoughts. The first was long and complicated: _if I say I want to talk to her, she'll think I didn't mind the kiss, she'll think I like her, she'll think I want to be with her…_

The second was simple: _I **do** want to speak with her._

He compromised by standing and saying as he walked past her to his room: "Set asked Kisara to leave the palace. Since their contact ends with this event, there can be no more for me to research. I'm leaving in the morning. Will you tell Malik for me?" He heard a gasp behind him and tried to will himself not to turn. But he couldn't resist a glance over his shoulder.

Isis was looking at him with wide, shocked, saddened eyes. As soon as she saw Seto turn, she snapped her head to the side, but not before Seto could see tears starting.

"Isis…" Seto heard his voice say softly, before he'd really had a chance to think. Isis raised her eyes again, meeting Seto's. They were longing, deeply longing. But they were sad, too, as though Isis thought she was asking for something she could never have.

Seto was torn in two. In his heart, he wanted to say he loved Isis, wanted so badly to take her in his arms and tell her how much he cared about her. At the same time, though, his mind was rejecting the emotions, trying to restore the unfeeling balance that was always so important to him.

His mind won out.

Gritting his teeth, Seto turned away fiercely and stalked to his room. _There's too much here!_ he told himself. _I'm glad to leave!_

His body shook as he packed and tried to block all thoughts of Isis and all memories of Kisara from his mind. _They aren't important anymore! I'm leaving tomorrow!_

_I never have to think about them again!_

When Seto awoke the next morning, it was to the realization that he'd dreamed about Kisara again. He sat up shakily and tried to make sense of that. _That's impossible!_ he exclaimed in his mind. _She's gone. She left the palace! I shouldn't be dreaming about her!_

Finally, Seto decided that he had dreamed about Kisara because that was what he had come to expect when he fell asleep. So this dream hadn't been a vision, it had just been a dream… nothing more.

But the uneasiness stayed in his mind, even when he and Isis set off for the airport. Isis had seemed apologetic when she'd said she was coming with him, explaining that she was the only one who knew where the airport was. Seto had only shrugged. He didn't mind.

For a while, they walked silently. Then Isis said uncertainly, "I never told you that I'm… I'm sorry about what I did… that one time." She swallowed, and said in a strained voice, "When I kissed you."

Not sure how to respond, unwilling to tell Isis that he hadn't been angry with her, and far too proud to say how much he'd liked the kiss, Seto just nodded once.

They were silent again.

Suddenly, a searing pain shot through Seto's head. He grunted and closed his eyes as a rushing sensation surrounded him.

"Seto…?" he heard Isis's voice cry, but the sound of it was very distant. Seto's mind clouded, blocking out everything around him; then, abruptly, it cleared. But he wasn't walking through the desert anymore.

Immediately, Seto realized what was happening. _Another vision?!!_ It was the first one, the first time Seto ever seen Kisara. But now he _was_ the priest Set instead of floating beside the scene; it was Seto holding Kisara's body in front of the stone tablet bearing the Blue-Eyes White Dragon carving.

And he was sad. Deeply, heartbrokenly sad. Set's—it _was_ Set's, there was no mistaking that—feeling was overpowering, so strong it nearly brought tears to Seto's eyes. As he struggled to fight off the despair, he felt a hand touch his shoulder.

A ghostly Kisara stood beside him. "Please," she said quietly. This time Seto hardly noticed the Egyptian because he was so used to understanding it. "There is still more for you to learn. You must remember my death."

"Your…?!" Seto exclaimed, then looked at the body of Kisara that he held in his arms. She wasn't moving, wasn't breathing. Why hadn't he realized that before? "How did you die?!" he asked, looking from the ghostly figure to the lifeless body and back again.

"That is what you must remember, High Priest," she said quietly. She began to fade.

"Wait, please!" Seto cried. But it was no use. The ghost-Kisara disappeared, leaving Seto alone in Set's memory. Seto looked down at the dead Kisara again, wracking his brains, for once willing to accept all of the foreign memories. _How did she die?!_ But the memories stopped at Set's asking Kisara to leave. They didn't go any further than what he had read. As Seto grasped this, processed what it meant with dismay, the scene vanished from his mind, leaving him to realize that he was on his hands and knees on the hot Egyptian sand. He was sweating and panting from… from shock, from fear, from receiving a vision when he thought he was done with them…

Then he noticed that Isis was kneeling next to him, her hand on his shoulder. "Seto! Seto, are you alright?"

He looked into her deep eyes and saw the concern in them. She really cared about him, really… loved him. But he couldn't let that matter to him right now. He still had research to do.

"I need to go back," he said, trying to cover the shaking in his voice with a determined tone. He got to his feet. "There's something I haven't finished yet."


	12. Chapter twelve

My deepest apologies for the screwiness of the formatting in this chapter before. I didn't realize. It's fixed now.

And while I'm at it, I don't own YGO.

* * *

Chapter Twelve 

"_I didn't learn anything!_"

For the past two days, that had been Seto's response when Isis asked if he'd like to share what he'd learned. He had been about to leave, two days ago, but it seemed he had received a vision that told him he had to come back and finish researching. Yet now he couldn't find anything. Isis knew he was angry, and she didn't blame him at all. It had to be frustrating.

But maybe he had found something today. Isis shot a hesitant glance into the library. "Seto…?"

He didn't even seem to notice that she'd spoken. He was staring down at something in his hand—Isis couldn't tell what—and trembling so much that Isis could see him shaking from the doorway. "Seto?" she repeated. "Is something wrong?"

Seto hadn't heard her. He was holding one of his Blue-Eyes cards to his face, bowing over it. _Kisara… Kisara, I'm so sorry…_ He felt a tear fall down his face.

Now Isis was alarmed. "Seto…?" She walked up to him and, after a small hesitation, put a hand on his shoulder. He was still shaking; Isis could feel it.

Seto lowered the Blue-Eyes—_so that's what it is_, realized Isis—and slowly looked up at her. As their eyes met, Isis saw that he was stunned. Stunned and hurt. Swallowing, she asked, "Would you like to share what you've learned?"

Seto didn't answer right away. He knew what he wanted to say: _He **killed** her. That !#$ Akunadin killed her!_ But somehow, the words seemed inappropriate, too harsh or too dramatic. And he could think of nothing else. So he looked away and pushed Isis's hand off his shoulder. "No!" he answered loudly, his voice hoarse from his tears.

Isis nodded quickly, slightly startled by his tone of voice, and turned away. But then Seto spoke again.

"I'm sorry," he said, his voice catching. "I just… can't share yet…"

Isis looked back. Was it that bad?

Still shaking, Seto gripped the Blue-Eyes card tightly. _Akunadin probably even told Kisara I wanted her to die, so she'd do it willingly…!_ he realized angrily. Then he noticed that Isis was still waiting, looking at him with that deep concern again. Not allowing himself to be affected by her worry, he said matter-of-factly, "I found out everything I needed to."

Isis lowered her eyes. "Will you be leaving, then?" she asked quietly. This time she was able to control herself, able to accept that Seto would leave. Able to accept that she would never see the one she loved again. But—

"I'm not sure."

Isis looked up, surprised. "Not sure?"

Seto shrugged, studying the table. "Maybe there's something about her in another text, or something," he explained. For some reason, he wanted to keep learning about Kisara. He wanted to find her. To… to thank her, to tell her… how much he loved her. Suddenly, the fact that his love came from Set's didn't matter. Seto loved her, and she'd given her life for him. Or for Set. It didn't matter which.

Isis was confused; before, Seto had been eager to get away, yet now he _wanted_ to stay. "But just two days ago, you couldn't wait to leave."

"I know. But what I discovered today… makes me want to know more about her." Now it seemed disrespectful, to just leave after finding out about Kisara's sacrifice.

Isis's brows met in worry. "Seto…" she said slowly. "This isn't like you, to care so much about… about your past. Only a few days ago, you hated the fact that you were being forced to care." She wished Seto would meet her eyes. "Seto, what's changed?"

He had no answer to that. So he just said, "Give me two days to decide what to do. I may leave, I may not. I'm not sure yet."

Isis nodded reluctantly. She was about to leave Seto to his thoughts, but a sudden quiet courage welled up in her heart. _Now is the time to tell him._ "Seto…" she said clearly. This time there was no stuttering, not even when Seto looked up and met her eyes. She held his gaze serenely, standing straight and still as she said, "Whether you choose to leave or to stay longer, I want you to know that I love you."

_I love you._ Seto repeated the words in his head, trying to grasp their magnitude. His mind acknowledged them, but they stopped short of reaching his heart. There was too much going on for him to feel anything else right now. "Isis…" It was so hard to explain the protective numbness he was feeling. Seto swallowed and said, "I think I love you too. But… there's just so much in my mind right now." He closed his eyes. "Just give me a while to work everything out."

"Yes," Isis heard herself say, quite calmly. "I understand." Still perfectly composed, she left the library and walked to her room. Inside, though, she was filled with joy.

_He might love me… He said he might love me!_

Seto sat in the library the next morning, deep in thought. He'd fallen asleep in there that night, after searching new scrolls for hours. He hadn't been able to read the new scrolls, anyway—if he were to use them, it would be back to the old routine of copy, proofread, and scan.

But now Seto was wondering if he did indeed still want to research. It didn't seem as important as it had last night. His feelings for Kisara seemed to be… changing. No longer was he filled with longing whenever he thought of her. Knowing that she had sacrificed herself to be the Blue-Eyes had increased Seto's respect for her, and he had a deeper respect of the monster now, too. But for some reason, it just wasn't burningly important that he find Kisara anymore.

Isis was glad she had extra time before she left for work that morning—she wanted to see how Seto was doing. To see if he'd made his decision yet.

She stood at the door of the library, watching as Seto stared down at the several scrolls spread across the table. He didn't seem to be reading them at all; his stare was glassy and Isis suspected that he was thinking instead of reading.

Nevertheless, she asked, "Are you learning anything, Seto?"

Seto almost jumped at Isis's voice. Not looking at her, he shook his head. "I can't read these," he said flatly.

"Oh. Are you going to copy them again?" Isis bit her lip. Maybe he would accept help now…? "Or… if you like, I could search for—"

"I'm not sure I want to research anymore," Seto interrupted.

"Oh," said Isis again, her heart sinking. "Will… will you be leaving today, then?" She spoke with difficulty around the sudden lump that had formed in her throat. _What's wrong with me?_ she wondered. _I knew this was coming. But I let myself get my hopes up, after he said… after he said he might love me…_

Seto hesitated before answering. As much as further research seemed unnecessary now, there was something that made him want to stay at the Ishtars'…

Isis watched Seto's pause anxiously, the tiniest glimmer of hope starting in her heart. Maybe he didn't want to leave?

Slowly, Seto said, "Isis… I told you yesterday that I l… that there was too much going on in my mind. And I told you before that I was in love with Kisara." He had been about to remind her of when he'd said he might love her. But that didn't seem like the best thing to say, not right now. Or maybe he was just afraid of what he would say after such a statement…?

"Yes, you did say that," Isis agreed nervously, the lump in her throat seeming to grow. His mention of his love for Kisara was upsetting.

But she needn't have worried. Seto stared at the table, looking at the hieroglyphs that were so unclear to him. "I think my… I think Set is… retreating." Seto didn't feel that made a lot of sense, so he explained, "For a long time, there was a battle going on in my mind, Set barraging me with memories and feelings."

Isis nodded, wondering why Seto was telling her this. Was it a cry for pity? _No, not from Seto_, she decided.

_But then what?_

"It's stopped now," Seto continued. "Set's… Set's feelings aren't in control anymore. And I can ignore his memories if I want. He's… he isn't gone, but he isn't… isn't really there either."

"I'm glad for you," said Isis quietly. Then, tentatively, she asked, "And your… love… for Kisara…?"

"Gone." Seto hadn't realized, until he said that, just how true it was. He respected the blue-eyed girl, but he no longer loved her. He was free of that overpowering emotion… which was a relief, of course, but it also made him a little sad. "Love" was an interesting feeling. Maybe he would even miss it.

But then he realized……

Finally, Seto raised his eyes from the table to look at Isis. As their eyes met, Isis could feel Seto searching her, and she wondered what he was looking for. She gazed back calmly, curiously… lovingly. Lovingly most of all. And in his eyes, she saw the same feeling reflected back.

"I said yesterday that I might love you," Seto said in a low, uncertain voice. "I said there was too much in my mind to feel anything extra. But that's gone now. And I…" He paused for a moment to collect his thoughts. Isis's eyes widened and her face settled into an elated smile as she realized what Seto was saying.

"Isis, I do love you."


	13. Chapter thirteen

Chapter Thirteen

Thinking back to the day Seto had said he loved her, Isis noticed something strange: surprise had been a large part of her emotions that day. Not obvious surprise, nothing that would be noticeable in her expression or manner, but enough for Isis to figure out that she hadn't really been expecting Seto to fall for her. She had hoped he would, obviously, and she had been hurt when it seemed like he didn't care about her, but she'd never really believed there was a chance he would love her. It had seemed unattainable, impossible. Even two days after Seto had told Isis of his love for her, the idea seemed incomprehensible.

But he _did_ love her…

She relived the moment that he'd told her over and over again. After he'd said those beautiful words—"Isis, I do love you,"—he had stood and walked over to her. He'd gently touched her cheek, as if wondering what it felt like, and they'd shared a moment's kiss. Nothing more was needed.

Little had changed about their relationship. There were small things, though. The night before, for example, instead of eating with Malik and Rishid in the dining room, Isis had eaten with Seto in his room. The two had talked, but for no longer than usual. Yet Isis had enjoyed it more than any conversation she'd had before—because she was with him, and she knew he cared about her.

When she spent time with Seto like that, it was almost possible for Isis to forget how soon he had to leave. But when she did remember, the idea was more terrifying than ever. She had once or twice considered asking Malik if Seto could stay longer, beyond the end of his allotted month. She doubted Malik would allow it, though, so she just enjoyed what time she had with Seto now.

That meant that the time she couldn't be with him—the hours that she spent at work—were torturous. From the time Isis left the tomb in the morning, the day seemed to drag by until she returned. Even the distance between the city and Isis's home seemed far greater than usual as she departed from work that afternoon.

Finally she reached the tomb. She pulled open the trapdoor eagerly and called, "I'm home!"

Before she could start off to Seto's room, however, Malik stopped her. "A word, Isis?"

"Sure," Isis answered, a little reluctantly. Malik walked into his own room, and Isis followed.

Malik paused for a moment, and then said, "Today and yesterday, Kaiba seemed to have a lot more free time than he has the rest of this month. Since you've been with him the most, maybe you know: is he finished researching?"

Isis was suddenly nervous, although she couldn't really figure out why. "Y-yes," she replied uncertainly. "He finished two days ago."

"He needs to leave, then."

Isis's stomach dropped and she suddenly felt hollow. "Leave… now?" she asked slowly. Malik nodded once. "But… but can't he stay a little longer? The month is almost over, isn't it? We said he could stay an entire month…"

"We said he could stay for a month to _research_," Malik reminded her firmly. "If he isn't researching, then he should go."

"But… there are only a few more days!" Isis said, realizing distantly that she sounded desperate. "Can't he just finish his month? Why is it so important that he goes now?"

"He is an outsider," said Malik, his voice now taking on an edge of hardness. "He doesn't belong here."

"But…" Isis started. _But I don't want him to leave yet!_ She felt tears in her eyes, tears of desperation, and frustration too, because she knew Malik was right. Seto _was_ an outsider. It had been stupid for her to even fall in love with him, knowing the whole time he would have to leave so soon.

Isis looked away to hide her tears. "Can't he stay longer?" she asked again. Her voice broke and she held back a sob.

Malik noticed. "Isis?" he asked, startled. The hardness was suddenly gone from his voice, now replaced with worry. "Isis, what's wrong?"

"Nothing, nothing," she tried to assure her brother as she quelled her tears. "I'm fine. I'll… I'll go tell Seto."

But Malik grabbed her arm before she could leave. "Isis…" She turned to look at him. He seemed very confused as he continued, "You… you really don't want Kaiba to leave, do you?"

Wordlessly, Isis shook her head.

"Why not?" Malik pressed.

Isis paused, but there was no point in hiding it. "I love him," she said simply.

Malik let go of her arm, at a loss for words. He stared down at the floor for a long moment, sighed, and slowly said, "Isis… Since there's less than a week left… he can stay until the end of the month."

Isis's eyes widened in surprise. "R-really?"

Malik nodded firmly and added, "But _only_ until then. Do you understand?"

Isis nodded as well. "I understand," she said. "It's fine." She smiled gratefully at her brother. "Thank you, Malik."

The boy shrugged. "Yeah," he said. "No problem."

Now Isis went to Seto's room. But as she looked in, she hesitated. Seto was sitting on his bed, staring at one of his Blue-Eyes cards with an unreadable, almost hypnotized expression.

Isis waited at the doorway. It was not the first time she had come upon Seto when he was like this. She was never sure if he was receiving a vision, "remembering" something from his past life, or just thinking. But whatever it was, Isis thought it probably had to do with Kisara—most likely with the information Seto had found two days ago. He still hadn't been able to tell Isis what it was that had affected him so much; she didn't press him.

After Isis had been standing outside of his room for about a minute, Seto looked at her and seemed to come out of his trance. He smiled slightly at Isis and gave her a nod that obviously meant, _come in_. She did, sitting down next to him on his bed, not too close, not too far away. She put her hand down on the bed and Seto put his next to it so that they were just touching.

He didn't say anything about what he'd been doing. Isis didn't ask.

She was, however, the first one to speak. "Malik has noticed that you're finished," she said. "He wanted you to leave. But since there are only five days left, he decided to let you stay."

Seto nodded, then asked, "Are there really only five days left?"

"Yes."

"You've been keeping track that closely?" A sarcastic smile appeared on Seto's face. "Were you that eager for me to leave?"

"Hardly," Isis protested with a shake of her head. "Quite the opposite, really."

"Oh?" Seto seemed interested in that. "How long, then?"

"How long what?"

"How long have you known you wanted me to stay? How long have you known you cared about me?"

Isis thought back. "Since the end of the first week, I believe."

"A while, then."

Shrugging, Isis said, "I suppose so. And what about you?"

"Around the middle of the second week, I guess. After we had breakfast together."

"Oh yes," Isis said thoughtfully. "I remember that…" She paused for a moment. "You said that day that you didn't want to be trapped by your destiny, didn't you?"

"Yes."

"And yet…" Isis spoke slowly, uncertain of what she was saying. "Within the last two weeks… your destiny has tried to trap you."

"_Tried_," Seto emphasized, scowling slightly.

"It almost succeeded."

For a moment, Seto was silent. Isis wondered briefly if he was annoyed with her. But then Seto said, "While I've been here, my sense of my 'past' has been… incredibly strong. Everything I could remember… all of Set's emotions… They were all that was in my mind. Before, I didn't understand why they were so clear, and I didn't like them at all. But now…"

Isis watched Seto as he considered what to say. He looked troubled, as if trying to put into words something he barely understood himself.

"Now…" he continued, "I know why those feelings were so strong. I know why I needed to research. There was… there was something I needed to remember. I needed to know about… Kisara's sacrifice."

Curious as she was, Isis resisted the urge to ask what Kisara's "sacrifice" had been. It was probably the information Seto had found two days ago, the information that he seemed to think about so much now. Seto would tell her if he wanted to.

Instead, Isis said, "You don't regret coming to research, then?"

"No, not at all," Seto answered, hardly pausing. "I resented it at first, but… what I learned was important. I'm glad I can remember that now… And…" He put his hand over Isis's now and gave her a small smile.

She smiled back. Seto didn't need to finish his sentence. "I don't regret it either," she told him softly.


	14. Chapter fourteen

Chapter Fourteen

Seto sat down on his bed, pushing himself into the far corner so that he was jammed between two walls. This was the way he liked to sit, he had discovered, with hard surfaces on either side of him, as if protecting him while he thought.

He had been thinking a lot over the past few days. Most of his time was spent in silent contemplation; in fact, practically the only time he spoke was when Isis came to talk with him before she left for work and after she returned home each day.

Half of the time his thoughts were of her. A large part of Seto was still trying to figure out _why_ he had fallen in love with her. Not that it bothered him any more; he just didn't understand how it could have happened, and it always frustrated him when he didn't understand something.

He had come up with all sorts of possible reasons—she was kind, she was interested in what he said, she was beautiful, she was like him—but none of them, individually, seemed to by why Seto loved her. Nor did they seem to add together to love. They would, at best, produce liking or respect. But _love_… love was more than those things.

And Seto didn't understand it…

This didn't frustrate him as much as it normally would, though. For the most part, he preferred not to question the feeling "love"… lest he over-think it and take away some of the emotion. That was something he knew he didn't want to do.

The only other thing on his mind was Kisara. Ironically, part of Seto's mind wondered where his unnatural love for _her_ had come from. He knew it was because of Set; but now, with the full strength of the priest's emotions gone and the memories under control, Seto wondered how he could have let such a feeling take him over.

Like he'd told Isis, though, he didn't regret it. It had been important for those emotions to push him to research. It had been important for him to learn of the sacrifice Kisara had made—it had been important to know that she had given her life.

Seto had dreamed of Kisara only once since he'd found out about her death. At the time, he'd been almost completely mastered by Set's emotions, enough that the first thing he did was ask Kisara for forgiveness. He'd felt that "he" had brought about her death. She readily pardoned him for it. Then, as Set's overwhelming guilt began to fade, Seto offered his own apology: for treating the Blue-Eyes White Dragon as nothing more than an object. Once again, Kisara forgave him easily, saying it was her duty and her joy to serve him, no matter how he treated her.

Then, Seto had asked what exactly had happened when Akunadin had killed her. Kisara had told him, her voice calm and factual—not at all like it should, talking about her own murder.

Seto sighed as he remembered that dream conversation. He had been furious at Akunadin, naturally, but Kisara had died for Set so willingly, and that frustrated him. Pulling a Blue-Eyes out of his pocket, Seto stared at it as if it could answer all his questions. _How could you so freely give your life? Was it that important for you to serve me?_ Seto felt tears in his eyes and tried to stop them. This had happened a few times; he had gotten so worked up about Kisara that he actually started crying. But it didn't matter, as long as he could get his tears under control before…

"Good afternoon, Seto."

…before Isis came home.

Seto didn't look up. He continued staring at the Blue-Eyes as he willed his tears to stop. Then, slowly, he said, "Good afternoon, Isis." He moved forward on the bed, pulling himself out of his protective corner, so that Isis could sit next to him.

She did so, and didn't say anything about Seto's tears. This almost caused Seto to smile, because it was so like Isis. So understanding.

As usual, Isis put her hand down between them, but this time, instead of placing his hand right next to it as he normally did, Seto put one hand on top of hers and lifted the other to her cheek. He traced her cheekbone with his thumb as her eyes rose to meet his.

All at once, he was struck by how _blue_ Isis's eyes were. They almost reminded him of Kisara's, but they were a different shade. And Seto preferred it that way. Isis was different from Kisara.

Seto ran his fingers through Isis's hair as she stared back at him, enfolding his other hand in hers. They were caught in a moment, trapped in a single feeling.

Finally, Seto said softly, "There are only two days left."

Isis closed her eyes then, her face displaying sorrow. "Yes," she agreed, just as quietly. "I don't want you to—"

"I know." Seto's hand found the back of Isis's neck. _It seems silly_, he thought vaguely, _that we've only kissed twice._ He had no idea what would have caused such a thought, but before he could figure it out, he was leaning towards Isis, pulling her forward slightly as well, so that their lips met.

Isis's arm came around Seto's neck so that the two pulled even closer together. This kiss was longer, deeper than the others had been. It was as though the two shared emotion through their touching lips, pleasure and longing and love… And it felt so natural. Seto wished it would never end.

But as it did end, Seto felt a strange uncertainty. _So "natural"…? Does that mean…?_

They sat together silently for a moment, Seto trying to put his thoughts into a coherent question. He was… confused, now. His love for Isis had suddenly felt familiar, and it bothered him. It was like he had felt that way before…

"Isis…" he started tentatively. "Did… in the past, were… were our past selves in love?"

Isis hesitated. "I'm not sure," she said. "I… I don't remember anything about my past life. I don't know if we were in love. We may have been…"

Seto stared at the ground, thinking hard.

"Why do you ask?" Isis said, sounding a little worried. Her hand was shaking around his.

"I…" Seto didn't know what to say. He didn't want to give up on his love for Isis, no matter what, but…

"You don't want to let yourself be controlled again, do you?" Isis asked in a whisper. Her voice shook slightly as she glanced at the floor. "By Set's emotions."

"Isis, I…" Had he hurt her feelings? "Th-that doesn't really matter," he lied.

"No, it's fine," Isis said, meeting Seto's eyes again and giving a weak imitation of her normal smile. "I understand. I really do. That's… that's the way you are. I don't mind it."

Seto looked at the ground again, completely unsure of himself. After a minute, he said, "I… I don't know. I'm sorry, Isis…"

They were still holding hands. It didn't even occur to Seto to let go.

"But…" Isis said after a minute, "…what about his love for… for Kisara?"

Unconsciously, Seto tensed.

"I-I'm sorry!" exclaimed Isis, noticing. "I shouldn't have—"

"No, it's fine," Seto interrupted, trying to convince himself that it was. "But… Kisara… she died. She was killed."

Isis started but didn't say anything, just sat next to Seto silently, as if waiting.

Slowly, haltingly, Seto began to explain. "After I read it in the journal, I talked with Kisara in a dream. She said that before she could leave the palace, Akunadin spoke to her and told her that my past self… wanted her to do something. He led her down to the dungeons, saying that Set desired the power of Kisara's soul monster—which was a _lie_—and to give it to him, Kisara would have to be dead. She… said she was fully willing to do anything, and Akunadin… just took her soul from her body, and she died. Then she awoke inside of the Blue-Eyes, still completely loyal to Set, determined to serve and protect him forever. Which includes serving and protecting me."

Seto sighed deeply as he finished, willing his hollow-feeling grief to go away. He raised his eyes to look at Isis.

She was gazing at him sympathetically. "How sad," she said in a quiet voice.

Seto shrugged and looked away, struggling for something else to think about, to distance himself from the deep sorrow that filled him whenever he thought of Kisara's death. His mind settled, as usual, on trying to understand the love he felt for Isis, the love that only a few minutes ago, had felt "natural." The feelings were so abnormal for Seto. Seeing others fall in love, he had never imagined it could happen to him—but it had. So was this because Set was still influencing him, or…?

After what felt like forever, he spoke. "My… my love for you… I don't think… I don't think it's his. Even if he loved your past self, he… I don't think he'd make me love you. And even if these emotions are his, it……" He took a deep breath. "It doesn't matter. Because I'm glad I love you. I don't want to lose that."


	15. Chapter fifteen Last chapter!

Chapter Fifteen

Isis awoke slowly, trying to figure out exactly why her heart felt so heavy. Then she remembered.

i _He's leaving today._ /i 

Its source identified, Isis's sorrow now grew stronger, and she had to hold back tears. i _I don't want Seto to leave. I want to be with him…_ /i 

Seto was packing, dragging out the action for as long as he could. Every few minutes he would "remember" something to do on his laptop, complete the act at a leisurely pace, and then reluctantly return to gathering his things. He wished, for once, he could be less neat and orderly, because there was hardly anything for him to pack.

Seto shook his head in disbelief at himself. In love or not, it wasn't like him to dally and delay like this.

i _But I don't want to leave her._ /i 

Yes, that would be the argument his mind claimed, Seto thought with faint annoyance. For a minute, he was frustrated again with the abundance of emotions that crowded him here, but then he remembered the feeling of being in love, remembered what it felt like to kiss Isis. Not all emotions were bad, he decided. Some, like the ones that had brought him here to learn about Kisara, were necessary. And some were simply wonderful.

"Good morning, Seto." Isis spoke softly, unsure that she could control her voice at a higher volume. She entered his room—which was almost no longer his, with everything packed up. Soon he would be gone from it. Then it would just be a room in her home, a part of the tomb.

Seto watched Isis look around the room, saw her take in its emptiness. He couldn't think of anything to say. As much as he loved Isis, he couldn't share with her his sorrow at having to leave. Finally, he asked, "Are you walking me to the airport?"

With slightly bitter amusement, Isis realized that Seto was trying not to show emotion. Taking her cue from him, she spoke calmly and offhandedly. "Yes. Do you have arrangements for a plane already?"

"A ten o'clock flight. I bought the ticket online yesterday." Seto noticed Isis's eyebrows contract a bit at this statement and added, "They can't tell where I was ordering from."

Isis relaxed and nodded her gratitude—the idea that someone could trace Seto's laptop to the tomb had indeed worried her. "You need to be at the airport at eight, then, don't you?"

"Yes." Seto glanced at the time displayed on his laptop. "In an hour." His stomach clenched. i _Only that long?_ /i 

Isis bit her lip. "We need to leave soon," she said quietly, not letting her voice tremble.

The two kept up their emotionless faces as Seto finished packing. Then Isis asked, "Would you like to eat breakfast before you go?"

Seto shrugged. "I can always get something at the airport." Isis's nod of agreement seemed forced to Seto, and he realized that she was looking for an excuse to be with him longer. "But if you haven't eaten, we can eat here first." This time, Isis's nod was more enthusiastic.

Isis led Seto to the dining room and poured him a bowl of cereal. Then, after making one for herself, she sat down at the table, next to Seto but around a corner. i _It's exactly like it was that one time_ /i , she realized, and wondered if Seto had noticed, or had even done that on purpose.

They ate awkwardly, without talking. As she finished her cereal, Isis looked at her watch. It was 7:30. "We should leave now," she said. "It takes a half-hour to walk there."

Seto nodded and ate the last of his cereal. Then he stood, picking up his bag and briefcase. Isis brought him out of the tomb, and they began their walk to the airport.

A few silent minutes passed before Isis had the courage to take Seto's free hand. He didn't pause or look at her at all as her hand closed around his, but looking up at him, she thought she saw him smile slightly.

They walked hand in hand then, neither of them talking. As they neared the city, Seto felt Isis's hand start to tremble. And he was taking purposefully small steps, an obvious contrast to his normal long strides. His thought process had gone from a forced worrying about KaibaCorp to thinking, over and over, i _I don't want to leave…_ /i 

He tightened his grip on Isis's hand. "I suppose the only question," he said casually, "is which of us will break down first."

"Yes, that is certainly the question," Isis replied in the same tone, but with a hint of amusement. Because it really should be quite funny, the way both of them hid their emotions. Even when they knew the other felt the same way. It was almost a game.

But as a plane flew overhead, low and large because of the closeness of the airport, Isis and Seto both gave a jolt. Seto cursed himself for his show of emotion, but said with a bitter smirk, "So I suppose we tie?"

"No, I think we should look for more emotion than that," Isis protested lightly with a shake of her head. "Our game shall continue." i _It needs to continue_ /i , she thought, i _or I'll lose myself completely…_ /i Their silence restored, the two continued to the airport.

As they reached the huge building, Isis felt her emotionless mask fade away. "I have to go to work, so I won't be able to come in with you," she said, and her voice wavered.

Seto nodded, deciding not to mention Isis's slip. "Then I suppose now is a good time…" He reached into his pocket and pulled out a slim object, handing it to Isis.

"Seto…!!" Isis breathed. The object was one of his three Blue-Eyes White Dragon cards. "Why are you…?"

Seto folded her hand over the card. "It's for you," he said.

"But… there's no way I can accept this!" Isis exclaimed, opening her hand again and trying to give the card back. "One of your Blue-Eyes…"

Seto shrugged indifferently. "Then let's say I'm loaning it to you," he said, and then a teasing smirk appeared on his face. "And let's say I trust you to give it back."

Isis blinked. "Like Obelisk…" she said, understanding of his allusion the only thing that was able to register on her mind. "But… but if Kisara…"

"She gave her life to protect and serve my past self and me," Seto agreed, knowing what Isis was going to ask. "But that can include protecting you, if I want her to. And I do."

Isis nodded distantly, standing silently for a long moment. She was completely thrown off by the gift. "Wh-when will I be able to give it back, though?" she asked finally. "We're…" Tears appeared in her eyes. "We're never going to see each other again after today," she said.

At last emotion was able to pierce through Seto. He felt tears in his eyes as well, and he put his arms around Isis. "It's a promise, too," he said, his voice slightly choked. "A promise that I'll come to see you. We will see each other again, I swear."

Isis buried her face in Seto's chest. "I don't want you to leave," she whispered. "I love you."

Seto bent down and kissed Isis. She returned it immediately, her hand coming up behind Seto's neck. Each could feel the other's sadness as they shared the deep, longing kiss.

When it ended, Isis and Seto both had tears trailing down their faces. Seto held Isis's gaze for a long minute, not wanting to leave her. But he had to. "A promise," he repeated shakily. "I will see you again."

He turned and began to walk away, and Isis watched for a second before turning herself. She looked down at the beautiful Blue-Eyes card Seto had lent her and said his words over to herself. i _"I will see you again."_ /i 


End file.
